


Blood Moon

by NXTTakeoverMK



Category: Mortal Kombat (Video Games), Mortal Kombat - All Media Types
Genre: Acceptance, Alternate Universe - Werewolves, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood Magic, F/F, Graphic depictions of violence - Freeform, Inner Demons, Loss of Control, Love Confessions, Mental Anguish, Mental Breakdown, Modified Backstory, Non-Canon Personalities, Non-Canon Relationship, Quite a lot of tears shed in this one, Romantic Soulmates, Transformation, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-16 17:53:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 52,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28835187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NXTTakeoverMK/pseuds/NXTTakeoverMK
Summary: An infestation of Lycans has come across Outworld, infecting innocents and causing chaos for Empress Kitana. During which, the Blood Mage, Skarlet comes across a new type of blood, one that potentially changes her life forever...This is my first fanfiction, which is something I’ve been working on in ‘Notepad’ for around 6 months so if you do have any feedback to give on this, please feel free to comment!
Relationships: Jade/Kitana (Mortal Kombat), Skarlet/Jade, Skarlet/Kitana/Jade
Kudos: 3





	1. Encounter (First Day)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: The infestation situation begins to worsen as tensions begin to rise in Kitana Kahn’s court, especially between herself and one of her ministers, Skarlet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, I will be posting a snippet of a fitting song to this setting of the story, at the start of every chapter.
> 
> _______________________________________
> 
> This is the end of your days.  
> It's time we end the charades.  
> Open the cage, I want to play,  
> Time for the bridges to blaze.
> 
> I'm slipping into a craze,  
> Twisted images into the brain.  
> Turn up the volume on the pain,  
> Give me the feeling I crave.
> 
> Show me your villainous ways,  
> Show me the killer's awake  
> Make me afraid,  
> That's how you bring me to life  
> Make the adrenaline race.  
> I want a taste.
> 
> I feel my rage erupting,  
> Feed my appetite for destruction.  
> Blood rushing,  
> I love when  
> You feed my appetite for destruction’
> 
> (Vo Williams - Appetite for Destruction)

The wolves have come out to play.

For the past few weeks, Outworld has been subject to attack by these monstrous creatures, known to get their power from the full moon, in addition to inducting citizens into their pack, via changing them into one of their own. They were known as werewolves, or lycans, the creatures of the night, and they were put in this universe to seek absolute domination.  
Their first stop was Outworld. It begun with one poor unfortunate soul, who not only encountered a male, but the king of the species, Braxus, who’s venomous bite was not only strong enough to turn the poor bastard into a werewolf, but corrupt his mind into becoming one with the pack.  
Soon afterwards, one victim became two, two became four, four became eight and the numbers ended up growing and growing until it became noticeable by the empress, Kitana Kahn, who ordered a full lockdown of Outworld, to prevent the numbers from increasing. However, whilst managing to slow down the number of casualties, this was not enough. Something needed to be done.

(In the meeting hall)

“Damn mongrels!”

The meeting was interrupted by an expression of anger and frustration from Baraka, the leader of the ferocious Tarkatan tribe. “I despise such creatures. They should be kept as pets, not vying for domination!” Here, Baraka’s anger is justified because although Tarkatans are immune to the transformative effects of the lycans’ venom, they were not immune to their killer potential, as shown when such wolves were responsible for the Narroka Village Massacre, which not only resulted in thousands of casulties, but ended up killing Baraka’s father as well.

“Well, someone’s obviously not a big fan of puppies,” snarked Erron Black.

“Mind your tongue, Black!” The sharp-toothed general responded angrily. “You’re lucky that-“

“Halt!”  
It was the voice of Kitana, which swiftly put an end to the quarrel between her ministers.

“I understand that lycanthropes can cause devestation to the realms, but we musn’t let this drive a wedge between us. We need to do more than just lock down the realm completely.”

“I suggest we do this offensively.” A Russian-accented voice beside her suggested. It was Skarlet, a blood mage and one Kitana’s third-in-command. When one would look at Skarlet, the first word that comes to mind would be ‘ravishing’. But saying that she was ravishing was clearly an understatement, as shown through her perfect facial features, including her eyes with dark crimson pupils and her thick, red-painted lips, which stood out on her face. Her skin appeared a bright pink colour, which contrasted the dark red colour of her lips and her black hair, tied up in a ponytail at the back, containing small streaks of red, resembling splatters of blood. Her attire consisted of a red and black vest top, with her midriff exposed, showing off more of her skin, and her legs were clad in a pair of tights, also coloured in red and black. Overall, this attire struck the thin line between danger and beauty, which made Skarlet very attractive towards those who she passes by.

“Skarlet. We need to strategise better-“

“No, your highness. They must be killed. Hiding away from them is but a temporary solution.”

“They’re all too powerful for our armies to handle. Their venom will infect them and turn them to the side of Braxus. We cannot afford to lose our soldiers, let alone have them turned against us.”

Baraka stood up, delighted at the thought of slashing a wolf’s head off with his arm blades. “I’m afraid that Miss Skarlet does have a point, your Highness. We must fight back against the lycans. We cannot stay in lockdown forever.”

“How?” Questioned the Empress. “How do you suggest we fight back? We cannot simply use silver, as that is what we use for our coins. The economy will be damaged because of it. Our options of attack are very limited.”

“So we just do nothing and let them inevitably attack us?” Skarlet burst out.

“Lower your voice, please.” A guard behind Kitana requested.

“You have no right to silence her ideas, fool!” Baraka said, raising his own voice.

This ended up causing a massive argument between everybody in the meeting. But, when things seemed like there was a fight looking to break out-

*SMASH*

“SILENCE!”

The conflict stopped. Kitana had managed to end it by using her fans to bring a light crashing down to the floor.

“We will not dispute over this important matter like a bunch of children! I demand order in this room, including you, Skarlet.”

Affected by this comment, taking it harshy, Skarlet stood up and said “Hang on. Why am I being singled out? I was the one who suggested a strategy that doesn’t involve sitting around waiting for this to end-“

“I told you, this strategy is not effective. We don’t have sufficient weapons to harm the lycanthropes!”

“Then, in that case, we should sacrifice the economy-“

“WE WILL NOT HAVE A REPEAT OF WHAT HAPPENED TEN YEARS AGO! DO YOU HEAR ME?” Kitana’s significantly raised her voice, frustrations were clearly beginning to show on her face, as were Skarlet’s.

A few of the guards began to quietly shift away from the argument between Kitana and Skarlet, before they began to escort the other people out, before another mass ugly scene broke out.

“We can build another economy, but we cannot build more people. You know what, Empress? Your defensive strategy is MURDER!” Skarlet yelled.

“I would’ve had you arrested by my guards by now if I haven’t appointed you as one of my chief ministers.” The furious Empress threatened.

“You should be thankful I’m here, otherwise you’ll still be living under Shao Kahn-“

A surge of rage rushed through Kitana as she delivered a powerful slap across the face of Skarlet, who looked back in shock. It was common for the previous rulers like Shao Kahn and Kotal Kahn to attack their subjects out of anger, but not for someone like Kitana, especially since she was unadmittedly in the wrong about the situation.

The chief minister looked back in a mixture of shock and anger, clutching her left cheek, which left a mark. She wanted to retaliate for the Kahn’s violent actions but instead, she took a few deep breaths and stood up straight.

“I see how it is.” She said with a scowl on her face. “Goodbye, Kitana.” And with that, she turned around and marched off, doing the right thing and not retaliating. The rest of the council followed suit, following this sudden strike.

“You must control yourself, Kitana. As you said, we do not want this unity to break apart, especially at a crucial time like this!” Baraka said sternly to the empress, before he joined the guards in leaving.

Once the door of the meeting room snapped shut, Kitana’s eyes widened in shock. “By the gods, what did I just do!?” she gasped as a few small tears began to form in her eyes.

(In Skarlet’s Chambers)

Many hours have passed since the argument and the assault. Skarlet sat on a nearby chair in her chambers, clearly still fuming over Kitana’s actions.

‘How dare she’, the blood mage thought. ‘Just because she has the highest power doesn’t give her the right to lash out over this. I was in the right!’ Her rage-induced thoughts continued for another few minutes before the rage shifted into depression, knowing that she would likely not have long until she, as well as the other Outworld dwellers, will be either killed or infected by these beasts. On the other hand, she did provoke Kitana’s attack with a rather hurtful comment, based on her horrifying past, living under Shao Kahn, until Skarlet and Jade assisted her in killing the man in Kotal Kahn’s coliseum, where she was eventually crowned Kahn of Outworld, signalling the dawn of a new era. After some thought, Skarlet made the decision that it was time to apologise to her Empress and make amends.

It was then that Skarlet heard a noise, near her window, one that resembled the scratching of glass. She briefly loomed over to try and find out where the noise was coming from, and was startled to find some scratch marks on her window-

Suddenly, she came face to face with a creature, which peeked into her view and growled viciously at her. She screamed in surprise and fell backwards as she got a full view of the creature. It was a werewolf. 

Her screams were of fear and confusion, as it is only 8:00pm in Outworld, not even close to nighttime, and here she was, face to face with one of the lycans that have been prowling round Outworld for weeks, seeking for a new comrade.

Skarlet managed to quickly come to her senses and get back up, right as the wolf lunged towards her, she took out her dagger and used her blood magic to form an extension into a sword, which she used to battle the wolf with. The sounds of the scraping of metal on metal surged throughout the palace as Skarlet’s blade collided many times with the wolf’s sharp black claws, which blocked every attempt to impale it. Likewise, it also failed to attack Skarlet with it’s own weapons of teeth and claws. However, it was not stupid, as it used it’s intellect to sweep Skarlet off her feet, clench it’s paw into a fist and punch her in the face, knocking her down. 

The wolf shone an evil, murderous grin as it attempted to go in for the kill. However, Skarlet was smarter, as she summoned a blood tentacle to grab the wolf by it’s torso, lifting it high into the air. Focusing her full power on controlling the tentacle, Skarlet used it to compress extremely hard around the wolf’s torso, attempting to crush it’s insides with her strength. However, realising that it may be too powerful and could survive such damage, she decided to control the tentacle to take aim towards the window and launch the animal like a cannonball, cutting it on some shards of broken glass, drawing blood, showering the tentacle with the delicious liquid, as Skarlet saw it as being. 

She felt the blood being absorbed through the tentacle before she returned it to her own body, transferring it into her bloodstream. She let off a refreshed sigh of relief as she felt the crimson substance coarse through her veins. When Skarlet was gifted with the power of Blood Magik, a huge downside came with it, as she has to consume many pints of blood every week, otherwise she would weaken, and further withdrawal would eventually lead to death. Luckily, she was given permission by Kitana to go hunting for blood once per week, which is why she typically fed on animal’s blood, and although it doesn’t have the same taste and empowering abilities as human blood, it was still enough to keep her going. That and it was helpful for the Tarkatan meat industry, as it spared them the trouble of cleaning up following a bloody process of killing animals and obtaining their meat. She was also occasionally allowed to feed on human blood, taking a few small drops from war wounds of the many soldiers in the Outworld Army. However, lycanthropic blood was a unique type of blood, and little did Skarlet realise what effects it had that could change her life, for better or worse...

As she turned around, exhausted from her battle, she got a surprise, as there stood Kitana and Baraka, starstruck at what happened. It seemed like Kitana also had similar intentions to Skarlet, apologising to her about the argument that led to the slap across the face.

“Y-your highness!” Skarlet said, breaking the silence. “I’m not cut! I haven’t been infected-“

“Skarlet-“

“It was right there! How on earth can werewolves be active when it isn’t even dark yet.”

“Skarlet, please! Calm yourself.” The Empress reassured her worried comrade, who heeded to her request and began to simmer the blood boiling from within her, due to stress and trauma.

“I have had a thought over what went down earlier, and although it seems like the threat is looming closer, we still lack the materials necessary to fight back. So it looks like we are going to have to impose a few stricter laws for protection, including an earlier curfew.”

She turned to the Tarkatan General next to her. “Baraka, please inform our economy party about this and that we need to come up with a financial plan for this period.”

Baraka nodded and went off to fulfil his duty. As Kitana was about to leave, Skarlet halted her briefly.

“Empress.” She said, apologetically. “I’m...deeply sorry about bringing up your past against you. I’m aware of your history with Shao Kahn and this was out of unnecessary anger.”

In a reassuring tone, the Empress responded “All is well now, Skarlet. And I too must apologise for my appalling actions against you, during our dispute. I should know better than to strike one of my best advisors.”

The two ladies bowed to each other and went off on their own separate paths. Skarlet remained shaken by the encounter with the werewolf, as she began to realise the full potential they now have, to attack Outworld. She realised that she could be next at any time. But she didn’t know that through her bloodstream, the absorbed blood of the lycan flowed through the veins and around her body, tainting her own pure blood, meaning that SHE was next...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was the first chapter! How did that lycan appear before the full moon? What about the blood that Skarlet absorbed? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> Anyways, what do you think? This is my first work, so it isn’t perfect, but do feel free to leave a comment down below, telling me what you think of it so far!


	2. Metamorphosis (First Night)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Following a horrifying ordeal, Skarlet is unable to sleep, and her insomnia ends up leading to her agonising fate, upon stepping foot outside...
> 
> _________________________________________
> 
> Cause I’m about to break down,  
> I’m searching for a way out.  
> I’m a liar, I’m a cheater, I’m a non-believer.  
> I’m a popular...popular...MONSTER!  
> I break down,  
> Falling into love now,  
> With falling apart...  
> I’m a popular...popular...MONSTER!
> 
> (Falling in Reverse - Popular Monster)

Skarlet was unable to sleep. For some unusual reason, she kept imagining the lycan from earlier attacking her, a replay of events that occurred earlier in the day. No matter how many times she changed her laying position, she eventually gave up trying to get to sleep and got up, going outside her chambers and onto the balcony, in an attempt to get some fresh air. Whilst looming over the forest in the distance, Skarlet heard a noise whispering to her. She looked down below and saw that it was a familiar figure: Jade, Kitana’s best friend and closest advisor.

“Greetings, Skarlet.” The emerald-clad beauty spoke to her in a gentle voice. “What brings you out here so late?”

“I could ask you the same thing, Jade.” Came her response.

“I actually have a reason to be outside, as I’m on nightwatch duty tonight.”

Skarlet briefly facepalmed, completely forgetting about the nightwatch schedule. However, considering that she had recently battled a lycan at close-death, it was hard to blame her for forgetting.

“Do you mind if I briefly come down and accompany you? I’m having some sleeping difficulties.”

Jade shrugged. “Well, the more the merrier! Come join me!”

Whilst trying not to wake any of her colleagues up, Skarlet crept over the balcony and dropped down to the floor below. Her chambers were only situated on the first floor, so it was not a dangerous or difficult drop to go through. 

“So.” Jade said to her after Skarlet landed. “What’s been on your mind recently?”

“You really want to know?” Skarlet asked.

Jade’s smile dropped to a somewhat concerned look. “I assume it did not go well today.”

“No, not really. Kitana and I had a dispute over a possible strategy to defend Outworld from the lycanthropes, then things got ugly before she slapped me across the face in anger.”

Jade gasped in shock. “Why would she do such a thing!? That’s not the Empress I am familiar with!”

“It was out of anger, that none of us could control.” She continued. “And then things got worse later on when I was attacked by a werewolf.”

The ebony beauty gasped again. “Oh God! Did it bite you!? Are you infected!?”

“Luckily, no. I managed to dispose of it using my blood magic.” Skarlet explained as she and Jade sat down on the ground, whilst the full moon began to form from it’s original crescent shape. The wolf blood inside of her began to react and coarse faster through her veins.

“Well, let’s be thankful that did not happen.” Jade said, with a sigh of relief. “I couldn’t imagine what we could do if any of Kitana’s ministers got bitten.”

Skarlet began to nervously laugh it off, still thinking about how close she was to being bitten earlier. Meanwhile, her now-mingled blood continued travelling through her veins as the full moon shone brightly in the sky.

Both women heard the sounds of many distant howls of the wolves, far beyond the forest behind the palace. And they both knew that it was linked to the rising of the full moon. Skarlet looked up at it.

“You know, despite all the negativity of lycanthropy that the moon is linked to, I can’t help but notice how beautiful it always is at night, like a light that illuminates the darkness around Outworld.” She remarked, briefly breaking the silence.

“Indeed it does, Skarlet.”

The two feminine warriors looked back at each other, but what Skarlet received from Jade was a look of surprise. Meanwhile, what Jade saw in Skarlet’s eyes was a complete lack of colour. Her pupils greyed out, void of it’s usual dark-red shade replaced with shiny, albeit haunted white glowing orbs.

“Uh...Skarlet.”

“What is it, Jade?”

The green lady pointed at the face of her comrade. “Y-your eyes! They’ve gone completely white.”

Skarlet raised an eyebrow in confusion. This was before she caught a glimpse of her altered face in the reflection of Jade’s armour, which changed the confusion into mild shock.

“What on earth is happening- ARGH!” Suddenly, the red-clad ninja violently hunched over in pain, clutching her stomach. Soon, Jade’s look of shock changed into a look of pure horror at her distressed companion. Meanwhile, the DNA in the wolf blood inside Skarlet began to combine with her own, twisting and corrupting her genes into something abominable.

“Skarlet!? Are you okay!?” Jade exclaimed whilst the red ninja had managed to get up on her knees, trying to fight the sudden pain and stand up. As Skarlet placed her hand on her abdomen to try and analyse the pain, the contact with her skin gave her a nasty surprise, for what she felt wasn’t skin; it was fur, beginning to grow out from her abdomen. She looked down in terror as she saw small, dark-red hairs forcing their way up through her skin.

“Oh my god, no, this can’t be!” She said aloud and frightened. “This can’t be happening! I wasn’t even bitten!” At this point, Skarlet realised what was happening to her; she was becoming a werewolf! Somehow, the wolf DNA in her bloodstream is triggering this painful transformation, despite the fact that she had not been physically infected with a bite. The pain began to spread all over her upper body, as well as the fur, attempting to cover every square inch of Skarlet’s skin. The kunoichi raised her hand up to her view and screamed out in fright and pain. She felt her bones crack and her hand muscles expand, as the skin began to be covered in the same red fur that had infected her torso. Whilst this happened, she looked at her nails, in which they became much more elongated than she had remembered them to be, whilst also turning more significantly sharper, taking the form of claws as a result. She also felt something fleshy against her palm so she turned it around and saw a small fleshy pad growing out of it, making her entire hand resemble a wolf’s paw. Whilst this painful transformation was happening to Skarlet, Jade watched on, helpless to do anything, since she was unfamiliar with this type of curse. The pain soon evolved from her torso to her entire body, as Skarlet began to scream in agony, while being forced on her knees.

“AAAAAAARGH...please! Somebody help me!” She cried out in pain, feeling her ears reshapen, becoming pointed as a result and, again, being covered in a coat of red hair. As they shifted to the top of her head, beginning on the more feral structure of her transformation, the sound of cloth tearing could be heard. This was due to the expansion of her overall muscular structure, which ended up tearing major parts of her clothing, including her brassiere, which exposed parts of her now-furry, red breasts. More and more agonising, panicked yells escaped the mouth of Skarlet, “OH GOD, THIS...IS PAINFUL!” Her blood ran molten through her veins, as a result of the Lycan venom fuelling her transformation, making it even more painful. The fur-growth began to travel down her entire body as Skarlet was forced down to the floor, by the joltingly painful effects. The satin tights were next to be destroyed as her muscles bulged to the point where the fibres keeping the material together were beginning to snap until they gave way to her skin, which immediately became shrouded in fur. The most pain was now being directed towards her spine, which initially began to expand from the bottom, especially in the tailbone, where it stretched out of her body before a large red tail erupted from the clothing around her rear. Whilst her new appendage had been growing, fur quickly began sprouting out of it, quicker than the other parts of her body, giving it a much furrier appearance, and through all this, Skarlet looked on in pure horror. She knew that her body wasn’t meant to function and morph like this.

“T...THE PAIN IS...TOO MUCH!” She struggled to cry out throughout her painful metamorphosis, as she felt her newly clawed and transformed feet emerge from her now torn-apart boots, showing off an elongated appearance, especially around the main body of the foot, whilst her toes looked significantly larger and rounder, making both feet resemble paws.  
Jade had as much agony as Skarlet had, as she watched her friend being forcefully transformed against her own will, and there was nothing she could do to save her.

“I’m so sorry.” She gasped. “I don’t know what to do!”

With fear in her now-white eyes, Skarlet looked up towards Jade, before she began to scream again. This time, her face was being deformed by the effects of the full moon. She let out a cry of agony, feeling her teeth sharpen, like each individual tooth was grinding down itself, into new animalistic weapons. Her nose also became less human-like and more beast-like, severely crippling the former ravishing looks that she once had. As this was happening, Skarlet alternated between pained screams and also animalistic growls, almost supernaturally feral, letting some sort of beast take over. Likewise, as it had been done with the rest of her body, the red fur began to spawn out of almost every pore of her facial skin, more elaborately on the sides of her face, her forehead, and a line down the middle of her face, leading to her nose, as her painful shift was nearing it’s completion. With a last gasp of her humanity, Skarlet reached a clawed hand out towards Jade, her blank eyes filled with pain and despair, letting out a cry of agony as she did so. Jade could only stare back in horror at the wolfish hybrid, that once took the appearance of a beautiful warrior that she knew, as it began to kneel, in a trance inflicted by the full moon itself. Exposing her clawed hands, stretched out beside her, Skarlet, under the hypnosis of the moonlight, let out a spine-chilling howl up towards the full moon, as the other lycans had done earlier.

Once the howl had died down, Jade heard some heavy breathing, as the creature before her stood dazed, as the wolfish side began to take over. She heard a loud growling noise from the figure, before the white eyes flashed from a moonlight-white to a crimson red. From this, it seemed like Skarlet’s soul was dead...and the Lycan had taken over her vessel from the inside. 

With sounds of animalistic snarling, the wolf began sprinting towards Jade on it’s hind legs, as opposed to charging on all fours, thus making it faster and deadlier, as the green-clad ninja yelled in fright and began to run. However, there was little space as she was behind the walls of the palace, leaving her face to face with a monster that was once her friend, claws unsheathed and ready to attack. The creature lunged towards Jade, with a yell that resembled Skarlet’s, but she was able to dodge the attack and whip out her own weapon, a metal stick, which extended both sides into a full-on glowing green staff, which she used to parry the wolf’s ferocious attacks before striking it across the face with it. However, that wasn’t enough as the creature grabbed onto the staff and pushed Jade to the ground, keeping her held down by pinning the bo on her chest. She found herself face to face with a vicious, snarling animal, attempting to tear her face to shreds. But with her wit, she landed a quick knee strike to the wolf’s midsection and stood up before using her staff to deliver a powerful uppercut to the chin. After that blow, the red beast staggered back and Jade noticed it’s eyes turn back into it’s previous glowing white state, before she heard some feminine-sounding whimpers, as the wolf before her began appearing as Skarlet on the inside. It seemed as if Jade had snapped her out of this killer trance.

Skarlet had successfully managed to regain her mind, memories and conscience, despite the drastically different appearance, which she looked down upon and gasped loudly, her blank, glowing eyes widened in horror.

“By the Gods, no!” She said terrified, looking down at her deformed hands, her legs, her claws, her tail, her feet, her entire body, twisted and deformed by the unsuspecting lycanthropic venom that had infected her.  
Although her glowing, white eyes made her seem emotionless, what laid inside told an entirely different story. Skarlet had somehow contracted the venom, unknowingly, and now she had become a werewolf, a beast that completely contrasted her gorgeous, yet killer complexion that she was known for. Her beautiful, deadly image now shattered with this horrific corruption. And with that, tears began to well up in her eyes, before she fell on her knees. Skarlet’s mind, filled to the brim with emotions, overpowered her to the point in which her sadness was reduced to nothing more than small weeps that came out from her, through her clenched teeth. “I...I’m a monster!”

Jade was also upset about what had happened, traumatised about not only witnessing what one of her closest friends had to endure, but also forced to attack her so she can still at least see the person trapped inside this beastly vessel. With sorrow flowing through every stem in her brain, she embraced the creature in front of her, the two ninjas sharing each other’s sadness.

“What...happened to you, Skarlet!?” Jade cried, still unsure of how this happened, despite the fact that Skarlet wasn’t bitten at all, during her previous encounter. Eventually, Skarlet’s tears stopped and both females began to calm, yet they were still unaware of this horrifying turn of events.

“I don’t know how!” Skarlet said, through her shock. “That wolf never bit me at all! I...I thought you can only be infected when you are physically attacked by it!”

Jade stood up, followed by Skarlet. “This is an unusual instance.”

“Oh, God! What am I going to do now!?” Skarlet began worrying. “I can’t return to the castle like this! I can’t keep this form away from Kitana or even Baraka, who DESPISES werewolves!”

“We will try and find a way, Skarlet.” Jade said. She looked up at the broken window from Skarlet’s earlier encounter. Skarlet also looked up, where she spotted something dangling from one of the broken shards of glass. Her discovery shone from the moonlight and from there, both ladies could see that it was part of a wolf’s flesh.

That looks deep. It definitely must have drawn blood from the way it cut itself on the glass, Skarlet thought to herself. Then, the thought of the word ‘blood’ hit her and, like it’s main bodily function, began to put things together. 

“I think I know why I transformed, Jade.” She said, breaking the silence.

“What was it?”

“It must have been when the lycan escaped, it cut itself from the broken window and I had somehow managed to absorb it’s blood, unknowingly.” As she explained, she got more visibly upset. “DAMN IT! Now I’m stuck like this...this animal!” And her expression reverted to distress once again.

“Skarlet,” Jade began. “I think that-“

“For god’s sake, look at me, Jade!” Skarlet burst out, presenting her body, corrupted by the wolf’s blood. “What do you see with your own eyes? Certainly not the woman you’ve called a friend for the past few years because I sure as hell don’t look like her!”

Since Skarlet was standing in the direction of where the moon shone, Jade got a better view of her. The figure in front of her had a body shape that resembled Skarlet’s, standing at the same height as her, but seemed more muscular, especially around the torso and back area. Every inch of the blood mage’s skin was covered in a coat of crimson-red fur and her hands were deformed to look like a fusion of a human, with the shape, and a wolf, with the claws, the paw pads on her palm and the hair. Looking down at the lower half of the body, Jade noticed the furry, red tail attached above Skarlet’s rear, swaying with the gentle midnight gusts. Despite appearing fully clothed before, Jade managed to see a large amount of the fur on her body because the muscle expansion caused her clothes to rip and tear from the pressure. Her gaze was directed towards the feet, where they seemed more animalistic, the toes appearing larger and the nails replaced by claws. Finally, she looked up at the face of her friend, coming into contact with her glowing white eyes, which bore resemblance to the full moon. Her skin was plastered with red fur, appearing white around her mouth and in a thicker coat of red around the sides of her face and a thick strip going down it, where her deformed nose rested in the middle of her face, the colours resembling a wolf’s muzzle. What surprised Jade was how much the face resembled Skarlet because despite the animalistic features, the face was not structurally deformed to the point where the mouth was outstretched to a muzzle, but remained where it was. Additionally, her prominent facial features stood out, like her eyebrows, still visible amongst the red fur, her brightened eyes standing out with her black eye shadow, as well as her lips, meaning that the blood mage still retained some of her trademark beauty, despite it being twisted by Lycanthropy.

After a brief silence, Jade began to smile. “You know what I see? I see my faithful friend, Skarlet. I don’t see you as some monster, just because you think you look like one on the outside.”

Skarlet looked up, after also looking at her new body. “Is that what you think?”

“No, it’s what I know. Because no matter what you look like, as long as I can see the soul of a powerful blood mage on the inside, then I know that it’s you. And to me, you’re anything but a monster.” She placed a hand on the shoulder of the she-wolf. “The real monsters are those who embrace the evil and use it for only themselves, but I know you aren’t like that, unlike what you used to be. In fact, you don’t look bad at all, even as a Lycanthrope. It’s like you took their general...appearance and made it seem far more beautiful. You’re my friend, Skarlet. And that’s all that matters in our relationship, human or not.”

Humbled by the kind, honest words spoken by Jade, a smile outstretched on Skarlet’s face as she walked over to hug Jade. “Thanks. I really needed that, Jade.”

“Don’t mention it!” Jade said, wrapping her arms around Skarlet’s upper body, feeling the warm silkiness of her ruby fur, covering her skin.

“But, about what happened earlier, when I tried to attack you, I don’t think that was me.” Skarlet said, with a look of doubt on her face.

“I’m not sure, but maybe it could be some bestial nature taking over your body. I’ll try my best to research Lycanthropy when I can.” She then yawned, showing that she was tired from the whole ordeal. “I must sleep now, Skarlet. Come on, let us return to the castle.”

Skarlet remained as Jade began to walk back. “I don’t think that’s a great idea, given my current...situation.” She then gestured to her own body.

Jade looked back, understandably. “Ah, yes, I see.”

“I’ll try to lay low until the morning, when the sun is up.” Skarlet said. She knew that going back into the castle as a werewolf would be suicide, given the current Lycanthrope infestation in Outworld.

“Understandable.” Jade said. “Well, I hope you’re okay by the morning. Farewell, Skarlet.” She bid before returning to the front of the castle and going inside.

Skarlet looked on in depression. Now she was likely going to be stuck like every single night indefinitely. Suddenly, she felt a large jolt of pain coming from her head, where she let out a shout in agony. It seemed that the same inner demons that took over her new form and tried to attack Jade were returning. Her eyes began flashing from white to red, as it begun to take over her vessel, with a strained look of pain on her face, trying to fight for control.

“Admit it, Skarlet. You need to kill right now!” It was then that she heard a dark, echoing feminine voice in her head, that sounded almost exactly like hers.

She briefly snapped out of this trance. “W-who’s there? Who are you?” She said abruptly, looking around for the source of the voice.

“I’m YOU.” The voice responded. It was actually coming from inside her head. Soon, she recognised it as the demon trying to take over her body and send it into an uncontrollable blood rage.

“I see that Blood Magic really does have it’s downsides. You can’t fully control which blood you absorb. Now look where you are!” The voice continued, then laughed evilly. “Now you really are the perfect vessel for murder!”

The pained Blood Mage continued to grasp the sides of her head in pain. “What do you want from me!?”

“I merely want to test out Blood Magic for myself...by KILLING!”

“No! I will do no such thing!” Skarlet responded.

“It will be so much fun to go on a killing spree!”

“I refuse! I’m not that person anymore!”

“Fair enough! I will have to drag you along, bitch!” The voice turned sinister as Skarlet felt another jolt of pain in her head, as she began to yell out in pain once again. When her eyes reopened, they were glowing red. She growled with murderous intent and said, with a sharpened smile, “Let the bloodshed commence!” 

With that, her Lycan vessel sniffed around the air before picking up the scent of a human. Smiling wickedly, Skarlet began running over to the source of the aroma and hid in the shadows, behind a building. She looked round the corner and saw what looked to be a homeless person, standing around, looking melancholy at the buildings around him. He was holding his arm, seemingly cut from an unknown source, dripping blood onto the floor beneath him. Such liquid had managed to attract Skarlet over, with these heightened senses she had gained as a wolf.

“Poor bastard.” Skarlet said to herself, under this hex. “I might as well put you out of your misery.” She raised her hand, and began to summon a trail of blood, that grabbed the ankles of the man and wrapped around them. Even as a werewolf, Skarlet still retained her knowledge of Blood Magic, as well as her basic fighting skills, which the demon in control used to it’s advantage. The man was dragged towards the once-human kunoichi, who raised her claws and with one gore-inflicting slash, cut the man’s throat open before he could make a sound to alert someone, killing him instantly and splattering blood all over the ground beside her. Once the kill had been made, Skarlet dragged her claws vertically over the man’s chest, cutting it open and then separating the skin, revealing the organs inside, before crushing the rib cage with a single strike. 

Suddenly, in an act of savage animalistic brutality, Skarlet ripped away the shattered ribs and began feasting on the organs and blood in the man’s torso, devouring his entrails, and reviling in the taste of blood. It was truly a horrific and gruesome sight to see a skilled Blood Mage eating somebody alive like nothing more than a carnivorous beast. Her gory display continued for a while, before she abruptly stopped, many seconds later. Her eyes shot wide, abruptly before they turned back to it’s glowing white colour, signifying that the demon was no longer there, and that Skarlet had regained control over her blood-soaked body. A cry of shock exited her mouth as she spat out the remains of the man’s organs in disgust. Whilst she enjoyed the taste of blood, organs, on the other hand, were revolting to her, in terms of taste, which showed that despite her blood-fuelled murders over the years, she has her own standards when it comes to killing. Most of which were thrown away once the Lycanthropic demon in her head had control of her body. She looked down at the man’s body, in terror, before looking at her blood-soaked hands, the blood beginning to be absorbed by her body, from her Blood Magic, leaving it as clean as it was before the killing. It was clear that Skarlet was traumatised by her actions, even with the demon taking over, it was physically her own hands which caused the death of the poor being in front of her. Skarlet grabbed her head and cried out in pain, anger, shock, her mind in an emotional mess of negativity.

“You sick fuck!” She exclaimed, directing her frustration to the voice in her head. “Why would you make me do something like this!?”

The voice responded through an evil chortle in her head. “It’s fun to watch people suffer.”  
Skarlet had now realised it’s motives. It was like she would lose complete control over her body and forced to do such ungodly things, like cold-blooded murder, before she was given back control immediately afterwards, riddled with trauma and shock, knowing that physically, SHE was the one who caused such events to happen.

“You were such an easy host for Lycanthropy, Skarlet,” the voice continued. “I have given you all this power, on top of your Blood Magik abilities, so maybe you should be thanking me. You see, I have been studying Blood Magik for years and I have longed to practice it. So I have instantly thought of a method that will benefit both of us.”

“By making me a monster!?” She responded aggressively.

“Ah, but remember. Every curse is secretly a blessing in disguise. Your enhanced strength, stamina, speed, everything is amplified by the wolf’s blood running through OUR veins.” The voice said, ending with an evil laugh.

Skarlet had heard enough. This resulted in her releasing a shout of frustration and slamming her head on a nearby wall, which would’ve been enough to fracture a regular being’s skull, but for her, it was an attempt to try and release this demon from inside her.

“Don’t do this to yourself-“

“I DEMAND YOU TO LEAVE!” She shouted out loud. “I will not let you have control of my body just to have me framed for your vile actions, all because you wanted my abilities!”

“I cannot leave, for I AM you.” The voice responded. “I hold all of your memories, your thoughts, everything! All I need to do is simply shroud your brain in bloodshed-like emotions, and you’ll be my perfect vessel for destruction.”

“NEVER!” And with that, Skarlet struck her head against the wall, this time, it was hard enough to begin drawing blood, which mingled with the red fur on her forehead.

“You’re just going to keep damaging yourself-“

“I couldn’t give less of a damn if I die from this! Now GET OUT!” And her head came into contact with the wall once again, this time leaving a small blood stain, that looked minute compared to the splatter fest that just occurred.

The voice in her head let out a sigh. “If it makes you feel any better, Skarlet,” it said in a tone of remorse, “not only do you have some chance of controlling yourself, but I will leave you at peace until the next full moon.”

This made Skarlet hesitate. “C-control!?”

“Yes.” Said the demon. “You are able to fight off the one in control of your mind during your time in this state. However, you will have to find out for yourself.”

“Who know for somebody as evil and manipulative as you are, you are this merciful too.” Skarlet smiled, knowing that the voice just revealed a part of it’s weakness. “Guess Lycans are as stupid as the legend suggests.”

“As I said, you will have to find out the way to keeping your wolf side under control otherwise I will have it to cause some more carnage.” The demon responded. “Farewell, Skarlet. And remember, you have until the next full moon tomorrow night. I heard that they are very common during October.” And with that, the voice ceased from her mind.

Skarlet looked down at the mangled corpse in front of her, her face becoming more gloomy, knowing that the blood was literally on her hands, though it was the result of her mind corrupted by that demon.

“That was not me.” She repeated to herself. “I would never go this far...”

After looking around to see if there is nobody about, she grabbed the corpse and set off with it, to hide the evidence. Eventually, she stopped at a nearby river and placed the corpse into a bush. It wasn’t much of a hiding spot but given the limited options nearby, and the risk of being spotted, it was good enough. The blood mage let out a sigh of depression and knelt by the river, getting a good look of the monster she has become.

“That’s not me.” She whispered to herself repeatedly, looking at the being in front of her, that was once a beautiful and powerful woman. Skarlet hung her head in sorrow, causing a single tear to travel down her fur-ridden face and land in the stream below her. The she-wolf looked down at the reflection in the water below her, letting the gentle breeze flow past her ears, situated on top of her head. She gently caressed her tail, stroking her hand through the thick crimson fur, as the touch of this new appendage was felt via the nerves around her lower back. These new animalistic features felt supernatural for the blood mage, as they didn’t suit a human at all. Despite the monstrous new form that she was stuck with every night, Skarlet herself was thankful that not only did she had full control, but the body also managed to adapt to her human-like activity, so she was able to do basic things like stand upright and manoeuvre around properly, and new skills such as enhanced adrenaline, enhanced senses and enhanced strength could benefit her.

“Hmm, maybe Jade was right.” She said to herself, staring back at the twisted, yet somehow still ravishing reflection of her body, completely striking the middle of the line between beauty and beast. “It could’ve gone much worse.” She said, a smile growing on the left corner of her mouth, as she stroked the side of her face, feeling the long, red hairs flow between her fingers. “This isn’t so bad after all. I could get used to this.” It felt like the finest of silks, the way it glided across her hand with each movement. She was going to have to adapt to this form every night, indefinitely, so it seems that she is trying to come to terms with it.

Eventually, Skarlet had decided to lay down and drift off to sleep, hoping that this will all go away, the werewolves, this curse, everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How long can Skarlet keep her curse hidden? What’s with the demon inside of her? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> Just so you know, I did the design of female werewolves differently to the males, with them having more humanoid faces, rather than muzzles. It’s a personal preference so try not to judge me!
> 
> Anyways, what do you think of this chapter? Do leave your thoughts down below and I’ll be back with Chapter 3 next week.


	3. Brutality (Second Day)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Skarlet may be human again, but the beast still lives on inside, as shown through a violent altercation that happens during the day.
> 
> ______________________________________
> 
> _“When I look in the mirror,  
>  I know what I see,  
> The Animal In Me!  
> One with the demon,  
> One with the beast,  
> The Animal In Me!  
> (MONSTER!)” ___
> 
> _  
> _(Solence - Animal In Me)_  
>  _

The intense shining of the rising Outworld Sun was what Skarlet was initially greeted with upon awakening. Once her brain had fully woken up, she raised a hand up to her view. Gone was the animalistic hybrid of a human’s limb and a wolf’s paw, and in it’s place, was the frail, yet skilled hand that she was most acquainted with. Upon seeing this, a smile grew across Skarlet’s mouth as she sat up and looked down at the river next to her, to view her own reflection, missing the red hairs and wolf nose, and plastered everywhere with soft, pale skin. To her delight, she had returned to her human form once again.

The blood mage breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, thank god that’s over, for now!” She said to herself. The wolf is gone from her body, for the moment. Somehow, overnight, her clothes had also managed to repair themselves, despite being near-ripped to shreds during her metamorphosis. As it was still quite early for someone in the castle to be awake, Skarlet decided to return to her chambers, and act like nothing has happened, for now.

(2 hours later, in Skarlet’s Chambers)

The Blood Mage was woken up to the sound of panic. There was a woman standing outside the palace, clearly in distress, surrounded by a group of Tarkatan officers, but that was not the reason she was in panic mode. The real reason was because she noticed a horrifying discovery nearby. Skarlet looked out of the window and was scared to see the commotion coming from nearby the river, from last night, for she was there. That was where she disposed of the innocent bystander that she had murdered in cold blood.

“Good lord,” one of the Tarkatans said, “I couldn’t imagine one of us doing this. Look here.” And he pointed to the scratch around the corpse’s throat, showing three large gashes.

“Our blades typically kill in one swipe. These are obviously claw marks.” Another one said, before turning to the woman. “We would like to thank you for reporting this incident to us, ma’am.”

And with that, the woman began to leave the scene, clearly traumatised from the gory scene that she witnessed. Skarlet began to panic as well, realising that everyone is aware of the corpse.

_Nobody can know _, she thought to herself. She heard a knock on the door and opened it, seeing it to be Jade, who briefly looked up and down her body, before smiling at the Bloodbender.__

__“It seems you’ve returned to normal, Skarlet.” Jade said._ _

__“Thank god for that,” Skarlet returned, “I’m all good, for now.”_ _

__“What else happened last night?”_ _

__“Did you not hear the scene outside, just now?” Skarlet guided Jade to look out of her window, at the Tarkatans analysing the corpse that was previously hidden in the bush. Jade looked at Skarlet in shock._ _

__“No...no, I don’t believe it one bit!” She began to panic._ _

__“Let me explain.” Skarlet interrupted her, fearing that Jade was about to freak out. “Well...it’s extremely complicated to explain, so I shall do so when I have the time. I need to prepare for today’s duties.”_ _

__As Skarlet left to get dressed, Jade continued to look at her in pure horror. For now she knows that Skarlet killed someone in her lycan form last night.  
“My...God!” She said to herself, clearly frightened by her realisation._ _

__(At a nearby training dojo)_ _

__The day went on as normal. Nothing exciting happened, other than a few people stepping out of line when Skarlet was assigned to patrol the streets outside the courtyard, in addition to a few people stopping to admiring her gorgeous looks, which she simply smiled back at. Now, she was in a friendly sparring session with Baraka, whom she knew DESPISED werewolves. During the session, both warriors took a small break, and Skarlet took the opportunity to speak to the Tarkatan._ _

__“Baraka.”_ _

__“Yes, Skarlet?”_ _

__“You know this whole situation about Lycans? I would...like to get some thoughts from you about it. I’m...interested.” She said, with a few pauses, unsure of what to say and what not to say that will unknowingly piss him off._ _

__Baraka sighed. “Not much from me, other than the fact that it will provide much more meat for the tribe.” He responded to her inquiry._ _

__“I’m just wondering,” Skarlet continued, hoping to strike a conversation with him, “why are werewolves generally outcasted from society?”_ _

__“What makes you wonder that?”_ _

__“Well, no offense to you or Tarkatans, but you two species are quite similar: monstrous and bloodthirsty. Again, no offense.” She was being precautious to not send Baraka into a deep fit of rage._ _

__Surprisingly, the cannibalistic blood knight was quite chill with this. “Understandable.” He said. “But the thing is, Tarkatans were accepted into society because we managed to show people that we are much more than murderous and bloodthirsty monsters. We swore allegiance to Kitana Kahn and protected her from any threats, at all costs, and that was necessary to prevent Outworld from possibly attacking Tarkata. Meanwhile, Lycanthropes show little to no emotion and they hunt and kill for their own enjoyment.” His voice started to get angrier as he began to remember the slaughter that took place at Narroka Village. “They have no care for any other being than themselves, and they even go the distance to forcefully recruit innocents into becoming their own.”_ _

__“Well, I guess you are lucky that Tarkatans aren’t affected by their venom, right?”_ _

__“Ha! Luck? Us Tarkatans never needed luck. We have brains, unlike those dogs. We had their one weakness that turned the tide before they dug their teeth too deep into the heart of the village. However, during the battle, my father was lost. He was the general of the army and he was murdered by the one wolf that I actually consider to be slightly less stupider than the rest: Braxus, king of the werewolves. Murderer of my father!” And here, Baraka just managed to calm himself right before he spun out into a fit of rage and destroyed the training dojo._ _

__Skarlet looked on in shock, at Baraka’s rant, which detailed how much he hated werewolves. From that, she confirmed to herself that she was not to let ANYBODY know about her curse, especially Baraka, for God knows what will happen to her the second he finds out._ _

__“Fancy another round of sparring? It’ll help you release any anger you might have.” She suggested to him._ _

__“Very well.” He said, before getting up. The two warriors got into their fighting stances before they charged at each other, into friendly battle. Both Baraka and Skarlet were both very experienced fighters, even without the usage of sharp blades or Blood Magik. Any attempt they made to strike each other was parried and countered by these skilled kombatants. Near the end of the session, Baraka managed to finally knock Skarlet down with a sweep attack followed by a powerful uppercut to the chin, sending her to the floor.  
Baraka laughed at her misfortune, as the Blood Mage laid there in a dazed state for several seconds. _ _

__“Get up, Skarlet!” He gloated. “You ain’t as stupid as those mangy creatures now, aren’t you?”_ _

__Suddenly, for some reason, these cocky words awakened something unusual inside Skarlet’s head, something driven by...anger. She performed a kip-up and landed on her feet, growling in rage as Baraka raised an eyebrow in surprise. He saw Skarlet’s dark red pupils turn an even brighter, glowing shade of crimson as she charged towards him. He shook it off as some sort of ‘motivation’._ _

__“Bring it.” He beckoned her, but soon found out that his arm was wrapped in something, holding him back. It was a blood tentacle, conjured by Skarlet. Baraka’s trapped state allowed Skarlet to deck him with a punch and unleash a flurry of powerful, rage-fueled strikes on him. She even summoned a blood staff and battered him with it before smacking him in the jaw with it, knocking the stunned Tarkatan down. Finally, she lunged on top of him and rained down a storm of punches around his body and face, each one feeling like a merciless hailstorm being brought down upon him._ _

__“I’LL SHOW YOU WHAT THIS MANGY CREATURE CAN DO!” Came a demonic roar from Skarlet. However, it didn’t sound like the calm, yet sensual tone that she was used to, rather being more comparable to the voice an unholy being. From there, it seems like the Demon from last night is somehow in her head, controlling the vessel of the Blood Mage. The scene got so violent to the point where she began scratching at his chest, leaving deep bloody cuts, which she slowly began to drain, with a sadistic, unstable grin on her face. It soon got taken a step too far when Skarlet, a look of insanity in her eyes, opened her mouth and bit down on one of the cuts, literally drinking his blood, like a cannibalistic psychopath as Baraka let out a pained cry, like a wounded animal. The entire scene was a bloody, gory mess._ _

__The loud shouts and grunts alerted a few guards who looked around the door and were horrified at the scene of Skarlet beating Baraka to a bloody pulp. Immediately, they rushed in and restrained the merciless bloodbender, pulling her off Baraka, who was clearly unconscious._ _

__“Jesus Christ, Skarlet! What is wrong with you!?” One of the guards shouted._ _

__“Snap out of it!” Another one said._ _

__With that, the rage within Skarlet’s mind was turned off and her ears were met with the shouts from the guards. The glowing aura of her pupils soon faded, leaving her eyes normal, freeing her vision. Her eyes stared in shock at the unconscious body of her training partner._ _

___Oh God, what did I just do? _Her mind quickly made a U-Turn from anger to panic in a near-instant.__ _ _

____All the commotion caught the attention of both Kitana and Jade, who walked in to see the unconcious Baraka and the shaken Skarlet, surrounded by guards trying to retrain and control her._ _ _ _

____“What is this!?” Kitana spoke loudly, pausing the scene._ _ _ _

____“We caught sight of Skarlet going over the top with Baraka.” One of the guards answered.  
Kitana looked on in frustration before she caught a glimpse of Skarlet, eyes widened in shock and trauma. She walked over to the red kunoichi, who had one of her hands on her forehead._ _ _ _

____“Skarlet,” she said in a stern, but calm voice and placing a hand on her shoulder, “please explain this to me. What happened?”_ _ _ _

____But Skarlet was too shook to say anything so she quickly brushed the Empress’ hand off and ran out of the dojo, gasping in shock as she left._ _ _ _

____From looking at the sheer terror on her loyal comrade’s face, Kitana looked on in a stare of confusion. Meanwhile, Jade’s stare was more sorrowful, knowing that she was the only witness to Skarlet’s painful metamorphosis the night before. Behind them, Baraka had recovered and is growling in anger. He let out a roar of fury and began to charge towards the door, only being restrained by the guards._ _ _ _

____“THAT BITCH!” He roared. “SHE WILL NOT BE GETTING AWAY WITH-“_ _ _ _

____“Silence!” Kitana ordered. “I will speak to Skarlet about this, Baraka. You will go and tend to your wounds.”_ _ _ _

____“Actually, Kitana, allow me to speak with Skarlet.” Jade stopped her._ _ _ _

____Kitana sighed. “Very well.” And she left the dojo, followed closely by an injured Baraka and the rest of the guards. Jade was the last one to leave, but not before looking back at the large stains of blood in the middle of the floor._ _ _ _

____“I can’t imagine what could be going through that poor girl’s mind.” She said quietly before leaving the second scene of crime, caused by the Blood Mage._ _ _ _

____(Back at the palace)_ _ _ _

____Skarlet dashed through the wide corridors of the castle, her breathing becoming heavier and more fearful by the second._ _ _ _

____“I can’t let anyone else get hurt!” She said quietly to herself, until she eventually reached her quarters, closing the door and locking it from the inside, isolating herself from everybody else, for the safety of everyone in the palace. She turned around, eyes wider than ever before as she looked in the mirror at herself. Though she appeared human on the outside, the beast from her wolf form still remained on the inside. It was shown from earlier that the demon from inside of her was seemingly trying to control her even without a full moon to have her in wolf form, and it was even amplifying her typical bloodthirsty habits._ _ _ _

____Skarlet needed answers. She remembered the voice from last night telling her that she was able to control these inner demons, and she needed those methods urgently, for such demons are affecting her life as a whole, not limited to the night. Frantically, she went over to her bookshelf and began to search for anything related to supernatural monsters. Eventually, she found one, that translated into ‘Night Creatures’ from Latin. Skarlet began to quickly turn each page, to find anything on Lycanthropes, in order to try and control her curse. To her luck, she managed to find an entire page’s worth on information about Lycanthropy, so she started from the top._ _ _ _

____“Once bitten by a Lycan, the victim will suffer from a transformation into a human-wolf hybrid every full moon for the forsee-“ Skarlet sighed, because she knew about that info already, so she skipped further down the page and read from there, “However, the affected can gain control of these bloodthirsty urges through the connection with a soulmate. This method may be temporary, but will prevent the immediate takeover of the mind, following the metamorphosis’ completion.”_ _ _ _

____As she read on, Skarlet’s mind opened up. She remembered the many people that she had shared a loving relationship with over the years, such as Shao Kahn, the one who raised her to be a Blood Mage, and Mileena, who she closely allied with in her rebellion. However, Skarlet knew the deadly fates of those who loved her the most, which made her feel sullen. Additionally, in terms of familial relations, Skarlet had none that she knew were alive. Her father and her siblings were all killed in an invasion of Earthrealm, specifically in her home country of Russia, when she was a child. And although her mother escaped, she was taken away from her in the streets of Outworld, where she was left to starve by herself until she was taken in and later raised by Shao Kahn, which resulted in her becoming the powerful maiden of Sanguine that she is today. Despite having good relations with the other people in Kitana’s court, Skarlet did not truly feel that she had a strong connection with any of them, not even Erron Black, which had been previously rumoured by onlookers, as next to Jade and Kitana, Erron was one of the living people Skarlet felt made a big contribution to her life. She sighed and closed the book, hopelessly dismissing the ‘cure’ as some sort of mythic fable._ _ _ _

____Suddenly, she heard knocking at her door, but she ignored it, not wanting anyone to enter, for their own safety, as well as hers. The person knocked again._ _ _ _

____“Please leave.” Skarlet eventually said._ _ _ _

____“Let me in, Skarlet.” It was Jade’s voice. “I won’t harm you.”_ _ _ _

____Then Skarlet remembered earlier that she promised to tell Jade about what went down the night before so she relented and let her friend into her chambers. Jade entered and they both sat down on the bed, to discuss._ _ _ _

____“I saw the aftermath of what went down with you and Baraka. Please tell me exactly what happened.” Jade said, in a calm voice, showing very little frustration towards the red ninja, and more of curiosity._ _ _ _

____Eventually, Skarlet began to explain the situation. “I lost control.” She said._ _ _ _

____“What do you mean you ‘lost control’?” Jade questioned her. “I heard from Baraka that your fit of rage just came from out of thin air, all for a few drops of blood. How could you lose control this easily?”_ _ _ _

____“This is difficult to explain, but I think it’s linked to something that happened last night.” Skarlet said._ _ _ _

____“You mean when you became a werewolf?”_ _ _ _

____“Yes. And you remember when the transformation ended, I suddenly tried to attack you. Well, I found out that it was the work of some demon, that had suddenly entered my mind, to control my body in my wolf form. When it claimed control, my mind would be clouded in a permanent hunger for murder, and my eyes would glow red, from white. This caused me to murder a man and begin eating it’s corpse’s entrails. It was truly revolting.” And with that last part, she said it with a hint of despair in her tone. “Do you want to know what the worst part of it was?”_ _ _ _

____“What?”_ _ _ _

____“These takeovers kept happening at random, forcing me to harm and kill innocent people and then switching it back to my view. It filled me with dread and regret, knowing that I, physically, was the one with blood on my hands, though on the inside, it wasn’t. Oh, Jade, I was truly helpless to stop myself! I don’t think I can control it any longer!” And her voice began wavering as she was on the verge of bursting into tears._ _ _ _

____Jade looked on in utter disbelief and sadness, now truly knowing the horrors that her friend had been through. As if being changed into some monster wasn’t bad enough, the fact that she was forced, against her own will, to act like one was even more horrific. A single tear began to form in each eye, as she reached over to embrace Skarlet._ _ _ _

____“My poor friend!” She exclaimed in sorrow. “How awful it must be for you to suffer this madness! And those innocent people who might have known the victim.”_ _ _ _

____Skarlet looked on in agreement. “Indeed, Jade. But this brings me to what went down earlier.”_ _ _ _

____“Go on...”_ _ _ _

____“During our sparring session, Baraka said something along the lines about me being ‘as stupid as those mangy creatures’, like he was gloating about his dominance over me. Somehow, this must have woken up the demon.”_ _ _ _

____“But how? You’re not in wolf form, you’re still human!”_ _ _ _

____“I believe that this may be one of the side effects of lycanthropy. Anyway, upon Baraka’s boasting, I immediately began seeing red, and then, fueled by rage, I began to pummel him to a bloody pulp. I even consumed his blood! I didn’t even know I was going too far, because I wasn’t in control, the demon was. I...I just hope that he is ok!” Her voice began wavering near the end once again, since Baraka is an extremely close ally to her and she didn’t intend to damage him this badly._ _ _ _

____“I heard that he is fine, aside from a nasal fracture and a few deep cuts.” Jade reassured her. Skarlet took a few deep breaths before she had the chance to break down, but she managed to calm herself in time. “Luckily, the fracture will heal quickly, thanks to our range of Edenian medicines.”._ _ _ _

____“Anyways, I have just finished researching about my condition. It mentions in this book, here,” and she directed Jade towards the reading material, on the page that she was on, “the affected can gain control of these bloodthirsty urges through the connection with a soulmate.”_ _ _ _

____“You know what, that doesn’t sound too complicated, Skarlet.” Jade said, with a glimmer of hope._ _ _ _

____“It’s much harder than you may think it is, Jade. You see, I don’t think I have somebody alive that I truly have a strong connection with.” Skarlet sighed. “There were both Shao Kahn and Mileena, the two people closest to me in my life, but they’re both dead. I also recall our previous history, so it surely cannot be you, unfortunately. And I think you already know about my family.”_ _ _ _

____Jade shivered at what she said at the end. She too remembered one of their earliest encounters, when Skarlet, fueled by her hunger for blood, tried extracting blood from her head, almost leading to an agonising death for her. Luckily, the past was behind them and Skarlet had successfully managed to strike a positive relationship with everybody in Kitana Kahn’s court._ _ _ _

____“Well, I suppose I don’t have much else to comment on, other than this. Keep searching through your heart, Skarlet.” Jade said after a brief silence. “There may be a deep, strong loving connection that you will find, quite possibly with the most unexpected person you have had acquaintance with, whether it be with someone in Kitana’s court or even one of the common street beggars.”_ _ _ _

____“I appreciate the advice, Jade. I’m really trying my best to control this monster inside and truly return to normal, but it’s not going to be easy.”_ _ _ _

____Jade placed a hand on the blood mage’s shoulder. “Well, I believe that you will make it through, because I know that you’ll do whatever it takes to stay strong.” She said in a soft but empowering tone, before she left the room, shutting the door behind her, which Skarlet locked. She exhaled and rested on her bed._ _ _ _

____“Enjoy being inside my head for as much as you can.” Skarlet was seemingly talking to herself on the outside, but on the inside, she was calling out the demon, giving it a warning. “For I will perish you, eternally.” Her own words, combined with Jade’s from earlier, began to build up her confidence, making her more sure that she will overcome this terrifying hex placed upon her. As she laid on the bed, Jade’s words of wisdom truly got to her, so she began searching through her heart, and from that, her brain was overloaded with positive, joyous memories that she shared with the emerald warrior._ _ _ _

____She remembered that one time when Jade provided her with a blood transfusion when she was dangerously low on her blood supply and nearing-death._ _ _ _

____She remembered when she comforted Jade after the death of Kotal Kahn, her lover, and later made arrangements for his funeral._ _ _ _

____She remembered when Jade saved her from being sexually assaulted in an alleyway, during a visit to Earthrealm._ _ _ _

____She also remembered, on that same trip, when Jade was being wrongfully arrested for a crime she didn’t commit and she brought in the evidence to save her._ _ _ _

____She remembered more and more different times and instances like this and when there were enough, and soon, the acts of love, affection, dedication and loyalty began to piece each other together like a puzzle. Once it was completed, it hit Skarlet. She finally knew who her one true soulmate was. It was Jade._ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will Skarlet find out who is her soulmate? Will she be able to keep her demons under control by day and by night? All will be revealed?
> 
> I’ll try to upload chapters once a week. And remember, if you have any feedback on this subpar mess of a story, then I would love to hear it!
> 
> Also, I changed Skarlet’s backstory a bit, going from the fact that she was a starving street orphan. I know she’s not likely Russian in MK11 but it got inspired by her Kold War skin.


	4. Decisions (Second Night)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Skarlet tries to keep her demons under control, an unexpected arrival leads to a malicious plan to take place the next night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ‘The secret side of me,  
> I never let you see.  
> I keep it caged but I can’t control it.  
> So stay away from me,  
> The beast is ugly.  
> I feel the rage but I just can’t hold it.
> 
> ‘It’s scratching on the walls,  
> In the closet, in the halls  
> It comes awake and I can’t control it.  
> Hiding under the bed,  
> In my body, in my head,  
> Why won’t somebody save me from this?  
> Make it end!’
> 
> ‘I feel it deep within, it’s just beneath the skin  
> I must confess that I feel like a monster!  
> I hate what I’ve become, the nightmare’s just begun,  
> I must confess that I feel like a monster!  
> I...I feel like a monster!  
> I...I feel like a monster!’
> 
> (Skillet - Monster)

Skarlet remained in her quarters for the remainder of the day, barring herself from the rest of the people in the castle, for everybody’s safety. The only time she allowed somebody in was a handmaiden who gave Skarlet her evening meal, but nothing else, apart from that. When she opened the door previously, she had to constantly check to see if Baraka was around, fearing that he would be after her, following the incident earlier that day.

Eventually, night fell, before the full moon was rising in the sky, and Skarlet stood on her balcony, looking out for the globe of power that shone in the night, for it was the signal of her transformation to commence. She was prepared to try out what was noted in the book about controlling the inner demons that came along with Lycanthropy. Skarlet had come to the conclusion that Jade might be her true love and that some form of contact with her during her metamorphosis would help in regaining immediate control over her body, instead of flying into a murderous fury and risk attacking, or even infecting her. She peered over the balcony, looking for Jade, as it was her night shift once again, before she saw a figure in the background. Assuming it to be her, she quietly called out “Jade! Is that you?”

The figure waved back, confirming it to be Jade. And with that, Skarlet hopped over the balcony and landed on the floor outside the palace. Jade walked over to the red kunoichi and greeted her.

“From the way you perfectly land from that height, I’m starting to think if there’s possibly Cat blood mixed in your veins.” She said, humorously.

Skarlet laughed and responded, “I reckon it wouldn’t get along with the wolf blood.”

“I heard that you quarantined yourself in your chambers. Are you feeling alright now?” Jade asked, her voice shifting from laughter to concern.

“It was for the best, Jade.” Skarlet responded.  
Jade mused for a second and then nodded in agreement. “And I suppose that Baraka would’ve been looking for you as well, after what happened earlier today.”

“Yeah.”

The two women sat down and watched the rising of the full moon, peeking out from behind the mass amount of trees in the forest, both of them awaiting the second horrific occurrence of Skarlet’s curse.

“Jade.” Skarlet asked her, breaking the temporary silence.

“Yes, Skarlet?”

“I had a think about what you told me earlier, about finding a soulmate to control my demons.”

“What about it? Did you find anything out?”

“I think so.” Skarlet stared at Jade as the moon reached it’s peak in the sky. She closed her eyes and reached out her hand, to hold Jade’s, whilst the emerald assassin looked down, confused by her actions.

“Do you remember all of the time we spent together ever since Shao Kahn’s death? And how you were the first person to truly understand me?” The blood mage opened her eyes to reveal the first signs of her metamorphosis, that being the silver glowing pupils that replaced her dark-red colour.

“You were the one who gave me a true purpose in life, rather than being a blood leech, Jade. And I feel that our connection has been growing ever since.” She continued to explain, whilst holding the other woman’s hand, whilst the hybrid blood inside her began to react to the moonlight shining down on her skin. “I...I love you, Jade. YOU are my soulmate.”

With widened eyes, an overjoyed Jade smiled and said back to Skarlet, “I love you too, Skarlet.”

And with that, it was clear that Skarlet had found her true love, so her hand clenched tighter around Jade’s, as she saw the small red hairs beginning to sprout from the back of her forearm.

She sighed. “Well, here goes nothing.” And she braced for any potential pain. Thankfully the transformation was nowhere near as painful as it was the previous night, although it still felt strange, from Skarlet’s point of view, watching the hair thicken into a coat of red fur across her arm. Jade also began to feel something strange on Skarlet’s hand, sensing her palm growing fleshy pads, and seeing her fingernails sharpen down into claws, whilst crimson hair grew from her hand, covering the pale skin. The same thing was happening to her abdomen, as well as her torso, with the fur growing longer and longer from out of her skin.

“You’re going to be okay, Skarlet.” Jade repeated softly to her friend, attempting to fill her head with memories of their friendship, in order to still have her friend, upon the end of her change, rather than a murderous beast on the inside. “I’m here for you.”

Meanwhile, Skarlet felt the back of her attire begin to rip and separate, as her back muscles grew larger, also showing the red fur that had been growing across her body. Similar things were happening to her lower body as well, the satin clothing around her legs splitting as her leg muscles bulged to unspeakable levels. Skarlet kept her gaze directly on Jade, unsure that if the method of keeping control would not work and she would spiral into a killer frenzy. Her mind was also completely focused on the woman in front of her, being filled with memories and images of her, which pushed back any and all demonic entities inside her head. Jade looked back and saw Skarlet’s ears grow into a more pointed shape, before they began to shift to the back of her head. Once they had finished changing, she snuck a hand around the back of her head and gently stroked them, as if she was petting an animal. This gentle feeling brought a smile to the blood mage’s face, despite the seemingly horrific changes happening to her body, one of which was coming from her lower back, in the form of a wolf tail growing out from the bottom of her spinal cord, before it eventually broke through the back of her tights. Jade also decided to stroke the furry appendage, essentially trying to keep Skarlet’s focus on her by showing love, knowing that she isn’t scared of the wolf that’s coming out of her and taking over her body. Through all this, Skarlet glared at each new feature of her body, with an uneasy stare, watching her once-ravishing looks and body becoming deformed by the effects of the Lycan blood coursing through every vein.

“Is it odd that I find these changes to be...fascinating?” Jade asked, caressing the newly grown tail of her friend.

“Maybe not for you, but I’m still uneasy about them.” Skarlet replied. After her newly-changed feet burst from her combat boots, the changes were beginning to take over her face, which Skarlet began to feel small sharp pains across. 

She held her eyes shut as her teeth began sharpening into fangs and her nose began changing to a darker colour and an animalistic shape. Jade thought of one final method to take her mind off the pain, and she did so by pressing her lips against Skarlet’s, into a passionate kiss. Whilst initially surprised by the unusually erotic action, as shown by her widened blank eyes, Skarlet returned the kiss, her mind being clouded with love and affection, rather than fear and fury. Whilst the two lovers kissed, Jade cupped both of Skarlet’s cheeks, feeling the growing red fur around them change the skin colour from a rosy pink to a crimson red. She sensed the silky growing hairs through her fingers and they had a similar feeling to the short black strands that laid upon Skarlet’s head. Usually at this stage, the Blood Mage’s mind would become evil and murderous but it was too busy being distracted by Jade’s romantic actions, thus keeping the beast at bay. However, Skarlet briefly broke the kiss with her lover, whilst still holding both of her hands, to bend her head back, facing the full moon above her and release a long howl towards it to the sky, though it was much softer and graceful than the animalistic call from the night before.

As soon as Skarlet had her stare fixated on Jade again, she was met with a smile of relief, seeing that her eyes had not changed from white to red, to represent her mind under control of the demon. Eventually, the silence was broken.

“It worked, Jade!” Skarlet found herself overjoyed by the outcome, as much as the woman opposite, who embraced her joyfully.

“You’re still here. I’m so glad you’re still here!” 

There was no way for the demon to take control at this point, for the everlasting power of love had acted like some powerful barrier around Skarlet’s mind, so that whilst she was forced to physically become a werewolf every night, she was still Skarlet on the inside, instead of some bloodthirsty animal. The embrace was briefly stopped before the two women looked at each other, Jade’s emerald-like eyes coming into contact with Skarlet’s glowing, silver orbs.

“I guess that all we need to do now is find out how to end this curse.” The red ninja spoke. “Until then...” she looked down at her new body, “you were right, Jade. “

“About what?”

“I’m not a monster after all. I just look...different.”

“Exactly! And remember, I judge my comrades on what I see on the inside. You’re still the blood mage I remember trapped inside an animal’s body.” Jade smiled a bit. “And it seems you have adapted quite well.”

Skarlet also smiled, flashing her canines, whilst placing a hand on the back of her neck. “You know, I’m always a sucker for fashion, not just blood.” She laughed softly, along with Jade, as the two women sat down to stare at the shining moon, brightening up the night sky.

“This demon of yours.” Jade said. “Do you know anything else about it?”

“What do you mean?”

“I meant about how it functions.”

“Well, there wasn’t too much information from my research, but I do know that I need the, quote, ‘power of love’ to control it.” Skarlet explained, adding a tone of humorous sarcasm near the end.

Jade looked at her, whilst holding her paw-hand hybrid in her own palms. “Now, Skarlet. I’m not always going to be there whenever you need to keep your demons at bay. But when you feel like something’s not right inside of your head, all you need to do is think about me.a” She told her friend, in a serious, but reassuring tone. “No matter what, I will always be there, in spirit, to guide you away from this monstrosity.”

“Thanks for that, Jade. But I still think that it might be too powerful to keep stable. It’s like my bloodlust has increased. Hell, I consumed a pint of blood yesterday and I still feel like I haven’t fed for weeks and weeks. What happens if I kill again?”

Upon mentioning it, Jade suddenly felt this horrible visualisation of the wolf, her friend, viciously tearing a poor, innocent man to shreds and devouring his insides, all to satisfy it’s own hunger and nothing else.

“Let’s try not to think too far ahead, for it will cause problems. Basically, whenever you feel like something’s taking over, just picture an emerald in your head, because it’s shining colour, and pricelessness will always remind you of me, my love.”

Skarlet knew exactly what Jade meant by that, for she was known for her association with the rich jewel, that being her primary choice of colour.

“I will.” She said.

Jade then began to return to the palace, to sleep. “I need to go and rest now, Skarlet. Good luck tonight, because you’re definitely going to need it.”

After Jade left Skarlet on her own, the wolf-ninja paused for a few moments, thinking about how to spend her time as a wolf. She knew her own limits being that she cannot do anything that would result in her being spotted. After a moment of thought, she settled on travelling through the forest opposite the palace.

(Outworld Forest - Night)

As Skarlet wandered through the forest, she looked around at the haunted setting around her, the dark trees looming over and the moonlight shining down, almost creating some sort of black and white effect. This gave off a spooky aura around the entire forest at night, a contrast to the day, where it was bright and colourful, a place of adventure. Eventually, she heard a snapping sound of a twig being broken and looked over to the source of the sound. It was a lone deer, wandering the forest at night. Skarlet looked at the majestic animal before looking down at her own clawed hands. She suddenly felt an urge to hunt.

“Hmm...why not?” She said quietly to herself. “After all, I can learn about my new skills.” And with that, her mind shifted to a murderous, but focused state, seeming more like an assassin and less like a wild animal, as she hid behind a nearby tree, looking on at her victim. Unlike the animalistic tendencies that she had, when the demon was in control, Skarlet was cool, calm and collected, wanting to make every kill as precise and perfect as possible. She placed her paw on the ground, summoning a blood trail that sneaked around the deer, eventually grabbing it’s attention. Due to it’s curiosity, the deer began to follow the small trail, which lured it in towards the awaiting blood mage. Suddenly, Skarlet jumped out, claws out and ready to strike, but the deer took off out of shock.

“Fine, let’s do this the hard way.” She snarled and took off, her enhanced speed allowing her to match the pace of the deer she was chasing. She unsheathed her blood dagger and launched it towards the deer’s right hind leg, crippling it. Once it came to a complete stop, Skarlet pounced once again, landing on the body and slashing her claws across its throat, killing the poor animal almost instantly. After the kill was made, she placed her hand over the deep gash in it’s throat and felt a refreshing feeling come over as the blood of the deer began siphoning into her bloodstream. It was shown that there is another clear contrast between Skarlet’s kill as an assassin and as a werewolf, the latter making it quick and painless, before draining only the blood, whilst the former preferred to maul her prey and gruesomely devour it’s entrails.

Once she had her fill of blood, a refreshed Skarlet left the corpse lying in the forest, quite possibly for another predator to snatch up and feast on, though it would be hard to because she had already taken up all the deer’s blood for herself. She let out a satisfied sigh and knelt down on the ground, taking a look at her dark surroundings.

“You know it would have been better to share.”

A gruff male voice suddenly appeared out of nowhere, catching Skarlet off guard as she was just getting up, causing her to stumble before she maintained her stance. With her back turned to the direction of the voice, she turned her head towards it in curiosity.

“D-Don’t worry, it’s no big deal. There’s plenty of animals I can snack on around here.” The voice said again before Skarlet turned around and saw a creature, it’s white eyes staring back at her in the darkness of the forest.

“Who are you?” She spoke.

The creature stepped out of the dark zone and into the moonlight, where Skarlet got a better view of what it looked like. It turns out that it was a male werewolf. It’s body looked very similar to Skarlet’s, being an anthropomorphic hybrid of a wolf and a human, though it appeared more masculine as well as being taller than the common male human. However, the biggest difference that she noticed was it’s face, a large muzzle outstretched from it, layered with a maw of razor-sharp fangs, resembling a wolf more than a human. She stared at it as it flashed it’s teeth, staring at the feminine wolf in front of him.

“You really do look ravishing as a wolf, Skarlet.” He said, eventually breaking the silence.

“I’m charmed.” Skarlet responded, unphased. “Wait.” She suddenly realised, “Do you know me?”

The beast grinned in a sadistic delight. “Know you? I’m practically your maker! We met yesterday evening where you threw me out of the damn window.”

It was then Skarlet had a horrific realisation. It was the same wolf that she had been attacked by, unknowingly absorbing it’s blood during the scuffle and later becoming one herself. Her emotions had a fire lit within them, using anger as a fuel

“You mean...YOU were the reason I’m stuck like this?”

“Guilty as charged-“

He was unable to finish as Skarlet’s eyes narrowed furiously and the colour turned from white, but not to red. Instead the colour changed into amber, which was assumed to be when she felt anger, but still had control over her vessel. A ferocious growl exited her as she had a vengeful instinct come over her, for that same wolf in front of her was the culprit to her becoming a werewolf in the first place.

Suddenly she let out a shout of fury and charged towards the male wolf, who laughed and took off, sprinting away as Skarlet chased after him, staying on his tail. They both ran a good distance in the forest before Skarlet remembered what she did with the deer from earlier and conjured some blood daggers, launching them at the lycan, but to her surprise, he managed to skilfully dodge each one. However, he was mildly distracted by each projectile, which gave Skarlet the chance to catch up. Eventually, she grabbed at his ankle with a lasso made from blood and the male wolf fell to the ground, with Skarlet looming over him, in a fit of rage.

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” She shouted at him, before she began raining down some punches across his maw. She grabbed at his hairy chest and yelled in his face, “DO YOU NOT KNOW ALL OF THE TRAUMA, ALL THE PAIN I HAVE BEEN THROUGH LIKE THIS!?”

The werewolf below her said nothing, spitting out blood before managing to say. “Technically...I never bit you. You were simply too foolish and absorbed lycan blood. It’s your fault-“ *SMASH* His words of mockery resulted in one of his sharp teeth getting punched out by the furious red wolf above him.

“It was you who decided to attack me in the first place, mongrel!” Skarlet said aloud before she grabbed at the sides of his face. Her voice began to quieten, still seething with rage as she lowered her furry humanoid face down to his feral complexion.

She growled at him “Now you better tell me how I can end this or I will give you a fate that is far worse than-”

*THWACK*

Suddenly, Skarlet was knocked off the wolf by an unseen force. She got up, clutching the side off her head and looked up to see another male lycan, but it was far bigger and muscular than the one from before. His entire muscular body was lined with silver fur and his large sharp teeth stuck out of his animalistic maw.

“Learn to respect your comrades, Skarlet!”

After looking at the wolf in front of her, Skarlet stepped back, her now-white eyes widened, for she was in the presence of the werewolf King himself: Braxus.

“I...It’s really you.” She said in astonishment.

“You’re damn right! It is I, Braxus! The Lycan King!” He announced proudly, with a mighty fist raised into the air.

Braxus viewed the ruby she-wolf in front of him, smiling in delight about how effective her transformation was, for he could attempt to recruit her into his cult, where he rules over the other lycans. Then he looked down at his injured subject.

“I am impressed with what you have become, Skarlet.”

“Well, I’m not as pleased. This demon inside of me is tearing my life apart and I wish to have this hex removed from me!” Skarlet said in response.

“You’ll get used to it, eventually. Just like how I did.” Braxus said before looking down at his fallen comrade. “‘Get up, Eli.” He picked the smaller male wolf up by the neck with one hand. “Jesus Christ, it’s embarrassing that a woman took you down in the first place but to not get up too?” Eli stumbled, still clearly affected by Skarlet’s attack, before he regained composure and stood up straight, on his hind legs. Both wolves stared down the female wolf in front of them.

Skarlet stared back at the two male wolves in front of her, her emotions conflicted once again, with a mixture of both surprise from the sudden appearance of the werewolf king, and also anger, for she knows that both wolves were responsible for her agonising transformation and violent nature that affected not only her, but her own peers.

“What do you want from me, Braxus?” She asked.

“It’s not too much to ask,” Braxus replied, “but since we’re both werewolves out here, face to face, I think that we have a lot in common.”

“Are you suggesting something? Just get to the point already!” The blood mage said impatiently.

“I would like you to join the Lycan Cult.”

A sinister chuckle escaped Skarlet’s lips before growing louder into mocking laughter in response to such an idiotic question.

She halted her sarcastic chortle to say “Y-you really think I would be that stupid enough to join your cult?”

“Well, I figured that you would be perfect to. Besides, we haven’t had a new female in quite a while.”

“Think again, dog. I’m not joining you.” She declared.

Her statement made Braxus mad. His eyes narrowed as he began to walk slowly towards her.  
“I’m being serious now.” He said in a macabre tone. “What do you have against me?”

“I just don’t know where to start-“ Skarlet suddenly burst out and give the King a mighty shove. “EVERYTHING! ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING! You invaded Outworld, you caused a major disturbance in our lives and you made me into a monster!” Skarlet yelled back in his face, whilst pointing her claw-tipped index finger at his chest. Meanwhile, Eli looked on in the background, watching the tone of this encounter shift from calm and eerie to loud and violent, within a fraction of a second.

“Do you have any sort of clue what me and the others have been put through?”

Braxus prepared to raise his voice, but stopped himself and lowered his voice. “It’s all about humans, isn’t it?” And he walked away from her.

“What are you talking about?”

“You wouldn’t know because you don’t give a damn, unless it affects your life, which it probably won’t.”

“Tell me. I’m...intrigued.”

Braxus hesitated for a second before he sighed. “Fine. You really want to know about Lycanthropy, my history?”

“Just cut to the chase, Braxus!” Skarlet said, wanting to get what she believed to be his ‘sob story’ over with.

“Alright...” he began.

“It started around 80 years ago. I was human, my mother recently died and the other people in my family resented me, ignored me because I wasn’t the favourite, especially my father, who neglected me the most. One fateful night, I was wandering around a field, with my nephew that I was looking after, watching the stars above me when I encountered a werewolf. Although I put up a good fight, it wasn’t enough to stop it from biting me and infecting me. And then, it happened. I felt every ounce of pain and agony from the ensuing transformation, as I was slowly losing my humanity from the outside. Whilst it happened, my nephew looked on, instead of running to get help or anything like that, watching his uncle become a monster, like it was some sort of horror movie. During which, my head felt like it was being controlled by some demon, which is why my own conscience kept flickering painfully until I howled at the moon in the sky. That’s when it took over. And without a second thought, I charged at my nephew and...killed him. I was a whole new beast now. Even when I was human, I still felt like a monster on the inside because every now and again, a small piece of the demon would taint my body, causing me to lash out in anger from time to time. Now at this time, people of Outworld were aware of Lycans existing, and avoided them, rather than fear them. But the thing is, they never bothered to help me. When I told them about my condition, did they try to help me, calm me, save me? No! They just left me to suffer every single night because they knew that I was a monster. I felt like the humans have betrayed me, just because I’m different to them. And from that day forward, I learned an important lesson. People are the real monsters. They judge you for what you are on the outside, rather than taking a look on the inside. They don’t know about your suffering because they’re selfish, only caring for their own safety, no matter how much they bullshit to their ‘loved ones’ or their ‘soulmates’ about caring about them. Since then, I have vowed to teach them a lesson, turning them into monsters like me and welcome them into my own cult, just to make them feel the exact same pain that I had to go through. And that, Skarlet, is how the werewolf King came to be.” And he ended his monologue with a wicked grin.

Throughout, Skarlet looked on in a look of shock. All this time, she never knew that Braxus has gone through the exact same trauma that she had endured, the feeling of losing control at any possible moment, the danger of having a monster inside, that could potentially harm everybody around her.

Suddenly, Braxus raised his head up towards the direction of the full moon and a long, mighty howl escaped his mouth. This call resulted in a chain reaction of distant wolf howls that could be heard all around Skarlet. When the noise died down, Skarlet looked around and saw that the bushes and trees were littered with glowing white dots. Creatures began to form from them, stepping out of the darkness and into the light, revealing themselves as Lycans, from Braxus’ cult. They surrounded her and began to close in before Braxus raised a hand, halting their movements.

‘My god. They really did this to themselves!?’ Skarlet thought, looking at the cult of male and female lycans surrounding her, snarling menacingly, including one she saw out of the corner of her eye, with a familiar half-white, half black hairstyle.

“You see, Skarlet? These are my siblings!” Braxus said. “They are the people who went through the same trauma as I did. They have the same feelings as I have and it bonds us, forming the family that I wish I’ve had from the start, rather than some heartless bastards I was raised with. You too have a chance to join us. We understand the pain that you have been through, unlike those vile human beings.” 

“They don’t need to know about my curse.”  
Skarlet said.

“And why’s that? Because they would reject you and outcast you like the rest of us were because we’re monsters. It’s not worth the risk of living a half-life hidden under the radar.” He held out his hand, an appendage twisted by Lycanthropic DNA.

“W-wait.” Skarlet halted him. “About what happened yesterday, how the hell did Eli appear before the full moon to attack me!?”

“It’s the result of a new formula, that allows our shifts to commence earlier and last longer. Works like an absolute dream!” Braxus explained, holding out his paw. “Now...join us.”

It was at this moment where Skarlet was stuck at a crossroads. Whilst she did feel a lot of sympathy for what Braxus had been through in the past, she still felt too loyal to Kitana to turn over to this dark side, especially since they were the ones who infected her in the first place.

“I will never join you.”

Braxus sighed. “I knew that would be answer, so I’m here to offer you a compromise that could benefit you.”

Though she couldn’t care less about what he had to say, Skarlet still turned towards him. “Go on...”

“For one night only, join us on an ambush, where we will be inducting a new being into our cult. In exchange for doing so, I will see if I can free you from this curse, and after that, we will cease contact. You won’t harm me, I won’t harm you.” Braxus explained to her.

“It depends. Who are you planning your attack on?”

“From what I heard from my comrades, there has been a word spread that the ‘power of love’ will prevent the rise of demons. Well I’m going to show her ‘love’: MY love for killing!”

As Braxus burst into an evil laugh, Skarlet’s eyes widened in horror, for she knew exactly who the werewolves were planning on attacking. It was Jade.

“What do you say, Skarlet?” Braxus asked her, still holding his hybrid limb out. “You in?”

This question caused something to happen in Skarlet’s brain, entirely conflicted by this decision. On the one hand, she wanted to be rid of this horrific curse and be rid of this demon inside of her. But on the other hand, she can’t risk literally throwing her best friend to the wolves, fearing that she will suffer just as much as her, if not more.

“Come on, I do insist you accept! If you don’t, then you will be stuck like this, and I can bring you into our family one way or another, but if you accept, you’re taking the easy way out and I can have someone possibly more valuable than you.” He smiled, presenting his razor maw. “It’s a win-win situation! An offer you can’t refuse.”

It took a long time for Skarlet to respond, for her mind was at work. Nobody is sure why but what happened next was a surprise, for she reached out her own hand and shook Braxus’.

“I’ll do it.” She said with a reluctant smile.

“You made the right decision, Skarlet.” Braxus smiled back. Suddenly, he signalled for his pack to withdraw and the werewolves soon disappeared, led by Eli, leaving the King alone with the kunoichi.

“Tomorrow is your lucky day.” He said before retreating with the others.

As soon as Braxus was gone, Skarlet turned away from him, sporting a devious grin on her face.

“Yes, Braxus. MY lucky day, and only mine.” She said to herself. From her smile and tone, it was clear that she had a plan for the ambush on Jade the next night. But what was it? Was she really willing to sacrifice her own friend just to be free of this curse?

Soon, she began to feel tired and she did not want to have the demon inside be summoned and cause any more trouble so Skarlet decided to rest for the remainder of the night. With nimble and silent movements, she climbed up onto her balcony and re-entered her chambers, being extremely careful about not waking anybody else up, for one single noise could initiate a chain reaction, ending in her getting caught in wolf form. As she settled down to sleep, Skarlet kept an optimistic smile on her face. What plans could she have in mind for tomorrow night?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What does Skarlet have planned for the next night? How will Braxus’ ambush on Jade turn out? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> So, we have our first OC, the Werewolf King, Braxus. Quite a tragic story he had there, which makes him resent humans because they see those who do not fit in as monsters...kinda like society nowadays. What do you think of him?
> 
> And also, this is the start of a truly romantic relationship, blossoming between Jade and Skarlet. The reason for this outlandish pairing being due to Jade suggesting that she wants to help Skarlet reform in some intros in MK11.
> 
> One last question. I pointed out that there was a female werewolf that appeared, with a black/white hairstyle. Who can that be? 🤔
> 
> As always, leave some feedback down below and I’ll see you next week!


	5. Breakdown (Third Day)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skarlet’s control of her inner demons becomes less and less unstable by the second, leading to an intervention by the Kahnum, concerned for the wellbeing of her friend, as well as her peers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ‘Let me feel it 'cause I don't know, I can't see  
> All I feel's I'm breaking up  
> Oh, can't you see it's taking over, over me?  
> Can't you see?  
> Yeah, you want me to fight it, and you want me to let go  
> Yeah, you tell me to fight it, and you damn me if I don't  
> So let me bleed it out and purge me, I can't see  
> No, I can't see, no, I can't see’
> 
> (Within Temptation - The Purge)

_“Please...don’t do this, Skarlet!”_

_Jade was defenseless, backed up against a tree with no possible option of escape. What faced her was a vicious creature, which took the form of a crimson werewolf, that being Skarlet, who reached her clawed hand out to grab at Jade’s throat._

_“You don’t love me at all. You looked down on me like the rest of those vile humans.” The she-wolf growled, her red eyes staring down the fearful Emerald._

_“I know that you are still in there!” Jade panicked._

_“I’m right here, Jade! Only as this monster that YOU created!” Skarlet flashed her fangs and went in for the kill. “And now the monster shall destroy the creator.”_

_And with that, a bloody scene followed. Skarlet lunged teeth first at Jade’s neck, biting and tearing her throat out like a vicious animal. Screams and chokes of pain and agony were echoed throughout the blackened forest as the wolf tore through it’s prey, seeing red with blood and gore everywhere in it’s sights. The red colour intensified throughout the setting as Jade took her last gasps, staring into the eyes of her killer, hand reaching out..._

_“S...skar...let!” And then she died, before the wolf proceeded to feast on her remains, her loved one dead due to this relentless unforgiving curse that changed her into a monster every night-_

Skarlet jolted awake, screaming in terror, suffering from a horrific nightmare, where she, in her wolf form, mauled Jade to death after losing control of her vessel. She looked down at her hands, expecting to see a pair of deformed paw-like appendages but she only saw a pair of human hands. With that, Skarlet sighed in relief, thankful to be in her regular human body once more. However, she began to writhe about in discomfort as something irritating was in her bed. She got up and her eyes widened at what she saw on her bedsheets, that being singular long strands of red hair, left over from her wolf form. The kunoichi knew that if somebody found out, then at the very least, there will be many questions asked, especially since Skarlet recently dyed her own hair black, and had it tied in a ponytail, so it couldn’t be the hairs from her head. Without any hesitation, she grabbed her sheets, careful not to spill any excess furs on the floor, and carried it out to her balcony, where she waved it in the air, watching the hairs fly off and into the air above her.

She sighed in relief. “That was very close”, she said to herself. However, her expression of relief turned into horror, as she saw a Tarkatan guard below her. Luckily for her, he didn’t notice the blood mage on the balcony above him, but what he felt was far worse, as one of the short furs landed on his shoulder, gaining his attention. But he simply brushed his shoulder, not taking any time to inspect what landed it, leading to Skarlet exhaling another sigh of relief. However, she did start to become more worried about the shedded furs on her bed, which led to her believing that maybe some physical traits could be carrying over to her human appearance, from her wolf appearance, so she headed into her bathroom and looked in the mirror in front of her.

For a good few minutes, Skarlet checked every square inch of her naked body, inside and out, for any similarities, such as sharper teeth, sharper nails, different eyes or even any unexpected hair growth. For the latter, she looked down at her nude body, staring at her crotch. Skarlet briefly jumped as she saw some red hair, believing it to be fur, as it is the same colour as the coat of fur in her wolf form. But then she remembered that whilst she dyed the hair on her head from red to black, she had forgot to do the same for her nether regions, resulting in a sigh and a shrug from her. The Blood Mage did a final check around her body before she heard a loud knock at the door. She frantically rushed to put on a fresh outfit and opened the door.

“Howdy, Skarlet!” It was Erron Black.

“Hello, Erron.” She responded. “What is it?”

“Just checkin’ up on you. I heard about the tussle with Baraka.” He said, his Texan accent on full display.

“Is he alright?”

“You know what he’s like. He’ll be fine! Though it’s going to take a couple of days for his fractured nose to heal.”

“Well, I’m glad that he’s alright.” Skarlet’s eyes showed a look of despair and guilt, over her savage actions that she displayed yesterday against her longtime comrade. “Erron?”

The gunslinger turned to her. “Yeah?”

“If you see Baraka at all today, could you please tell him that I’m deeply sorry for what transpired yesterday.” The kunoichi requested, wanting to try and make things right before they got any worse.

“I’ll see if he’s lurking around today, Skarlet.” Erron replied.

“Honestly, I don’t know what the hell came over me that day.” She continued, reminiscing the carnage but keeping the truth hidden.

“That is odd, indeed. Maybe you couldn’t take losing that one time.” He said before he passed Skarler a note. “Your schedule for today. There’s a deer corpse that was found in the forest last night. It needs to be disposed of otherwise we could attract god-knows-what and have a second big problem to deal with.”

Upon hearing what Erron read out on the note, Skarlet’s mind immediately backtracked to the previous night, where she hunted that same deer in her wolf form, and later met with Braxus about...the ambush!

As Erron was about to turn around and leave, Skarlet stopped him by grabbing his shoulder.

“Do you know where Jade is? I need to speak with her about something-“

Erron adjusted his hat. “She’s gone out.”

“When will she be back?”

“Dunno. Could probably be around midnight. It ain’t easy travelling to and from Earthrealm, especially during these conditions.”

The fear and worry within Skarlet began to rise further as Erron finally left, closing the door behind him. Jade wasn’t going to be back by midnight which not only means that she would be unable to warn her about the oncoming attack tonight, but there will be nobody to control her during her transformation at full moon. As these negative emotions began to build up inside her, it began to fuel the demon inside her, ready to lash out at any moment. Luckily, she was able to quickly notice this and picture an emerald in her thoughts, for it reminded her of Jade. Thinking about her soulmate began to tame the beast within, preventing a sudden violent outburst from happening. With her mind now in a stable condition, Skarlet stood up and prepared to start her day.

_(Outworld Forest - Day)_

“Christ. I doubt the Tarkatans would be eating that.”

Both Skarlet and Erron were in the forest, examining the corpse of a deer. In Erron’s mind, he believed that a wild animal must have gotten to it, quite possibly, one of the werewolves. However, in Skarlet’s mind, she knew that it was her who was the ‘wild animal’.

“So how are we going to move it, Erron?” The kunoichi asked the cowboy.

“I reckon we should split it in half and carry it to the butcher’s.” Erron’s response came.

With that in mind, Skarlet took out her dagger, extending it into a blood sword and prepared to make the cut across it’s midsection. But as she approached to impale it, something went off in her head. Her memories awakened to take her back to the night before, where she slashed the deer’s throat with a knife and drained it’s blood. Skarlet copied her exact actions in real life, slicing across the body, and she even reached out her hand, as if she was extracting it’s blood. But her vision was completely different. She didn’t see her ordinary hand, instead she saw a hand that resembled a wolf’s paw, reaching out to drain the blood. And that sudden vision caused another flashback to occur, where Skarlet saw that exact same paw slash as the homeless man’s throat before she proceeded to devour his entrails in a gory, monstrous fashion. Fear and dread was on display in Skarlet’s eyes as her breathing grew heavier and heavier. All this stress was building up and on it’s way to summon the demon, but at the last possible second, an emerald appeared in her head, and Skarlet visualised it for long enough, to put her mind on her lover and nothing else, reducing the stress. It was like a hand gently reaching out to tame the beast, simmering it’s anger down to peace.

“ _Never_ forget what you did!” She heard a voice resembling her own, and figured it to be the demon lurking inside of her head. “I know you have the urge for some more blood!”

“No, now go away!” Skarlet spoke quietly to herself.

“But it will be delightful! I know you have the urge to cut the nearest person’s throat, dive your tongue into the wound and feast on their corpse!” The demon was attempting to lure Skarlet in to a weak point, where it would then take control and send her on another blood-fuelled rampage.

“Please...leave me alone!” She responded in a pained tone, fearing that control could slip from her grasp at any moment.

As the demon let out a haunting chuckle, Skarlet let out a cry of frustration, “Dammit, _STOP_!” and pounded herself in the head with her right fist, attempting to silence the monster within. This ended up catching Erron’s attention.

“Um...you okay?” Erron’s confused voice snapped Skarlet out of her moment.

“Yes.” She responded. “I was just...thinking if there was a quicker way we...can get to the butcher’s from here.” Skarlet tried to mask her moment of inner stress with a half-assed excuse. Thankfully, Erron shrugged and picked up the rear end of the bisected deer corpse, whilst Skarlet carried it’s upper half over her shoulder. They left the forest and went over to the butcher’s, to dispose of the remains.

“Hey, why do I have to carry the ass?”

“It makes sense, considering you are one, Erron.” Skarlet replied, in a snarky manner. Erron rolled his eyes and hauled the half of the corpse to the butcher’s.

This is going to be a long day, she thought to herself.

_(Outworld Marketplace. 4:30pm)_

Luckily for Skarlet, the rest of the day, up until now, had gone on quite smoothly. There had been a lack of anything that could potentially trigger the demon inside of her, and even if there was, her mind has been focused on the emerald to keep it at bay, just to be precautious. At the moment, she was assigned to street patrol for the remainder of her shift, where she had to simply keep watch and make sure everything was in order in the streets of Outworld. How hard can that be?

Skarlet kept watch outside a local bar, where the men of Outworld gathered for a few drinks after a long day at work. As she stood nearby, she could hear the ongoing conversations between good friends, the sharing of laughter and humour and the clinking of glasses, indicating a toast to some sort of important event in their lives, or something like that. The kunoichi remained outside, kindly refusing the offers for drinks on a few regulars entering the bar. Apart from that, everything was in order, as Skarlet’s mind began to drift elsewhere, thinking about Jade.

I do hope you’re safe in Earthrealm, Jade, she thought to herself, looking up at the sky and leaning her body against the ancient, brick walls holding the building up behind her. Skarlet wondered what Jade could possibly doing in Earthrealm, especially with the realm locked down. Maybe it was some sort of special duty given to her by Kitana. After all, she was the one who trusted Jade the most.

Suddenly, her train of thought was abruptly halted when she was tapped on the shoulder by another woman. Skarlet woke up from her daydream and looked at her. The woman in front of her, was a pleasant female, most likely in her early-thirties, like Skarlet, with locks of dark hair flowing down the back of her head and a bright face with wide, blue eyes and dark red lips. She was dressed in a casual female attire of a denim short skirt and a black tank top.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” she asked, “do you know if you’ve seen my husband in there?”

“I’m not sure.”

“He’s the one with short blonde hair and a vest jacket on.” The woman said, describing her lover.

Skarlet peeked inside of the bar, where she was greeted with a wolf whistle from some horny drunk, shaking her head in response. She scanned around the interior of the building until she saw a man that matched the woman’s description.

“That might be him over there.” Skarlet pointed out.

“Right, thank you.” And with that, the woman’s facial expression turned angry as she marched over to him. Skarlet watched on, just to be sure that she would step in if something violent unfolded.

“‘Working overtime’ again, Darby?” She asked her husband, in an annoyed tone.

“Priscilla! Nice seeing you here, darling. Want me to buy you a-“

“No, we’re leaving!” And with that, she grabbed Darby by the wrist and forced him up from his seat, eliciting a groan from his two drinking friends.

“You can’t just go ahead and ruin my fun!” Darby protested.

“And why not? Because being a liar is more enjoyable than being with your wife?” Priscilla argued back.

“Well maybe it’s because I don’t get a lot of time with her, since she’s having an affair with someone else.”

In response, Priscilla gasped before it turned into mocking laughter. “Utterly ridiculous!” She said through her guffaws. “An-and which of your drunken stooges came up with this bullshit?”

“Cody told me that he saw you with that guy, Hunter, from Poker Night.”

“And because we looked at each other in a certain way definitely means that we’re having an affair.” Priscilla retorted, sarcastically, before she glared at Cody, one of Darby’s friends. However, her husband noticed.

“A-ha! I see it now!”

“See what!”

“That glare you just did at Cody to say ‘I told you not to tell him’.” Then Darby turned his attention to his friend. “Why the hell did you not tell me until now, asshole?”

“She...she gave me 50 goldkoins to keep me quiet.” Cody blurted out.

Darby sighed and chuckled. “50!? God, you are gullible as hell. I’m surprised she didn’t offer to pull your pants down and su-“

He was cut off by a furious Priscilla taking the remainder of Cody’s drink and splashing it in her husband’s face, before she proceeded to smash the glass into his forehead in a fit of rage. From this, Skarlet knew that now was the time to step in.

“Don’t you EVER speak about your wife like that AGAIN you vile little shit!” She roared at a downed Darby.

Skarlet intervened by pulling her to one side.

“Get ahold of yourself, madam!” She said.

“Well, maybe you can get your hands off me so I can hit that bastard harder!”

“No.” Skarlet said in a firm and strict voice. “You do realise what trouble assault can get you in, do you?”

“It was justified.”

“So you used glass cups against words? Pathetic. And I’m going to have to charge you for it.”

“He was going to hit me anyways. That man is abusive.” Priscilla scrambled to find excuses to try and weasel her way out of her predicament, but it wasn’t helping her in the slightest.

“Tell that to the judge.” Skarlet did not budge and attempted to retrieve a pair of handcuffs.

“I am NOT going to prison!”

“Keep your attitude up and you will be going in a second.”

It was then, during the time when Skarlet’s hand was free, Priscilla wriggled out of her grasp and used her right hand to slap the ravishing Russian in the face. After contact, a face of disbelief came over Skarlet, as she clutched her left cheek. Meanwhile, inside of her mind, the sleeping demon was awakened and furious at Priscilla’s attack.

“How dare she!” The demon spoke inside of Skarlet’s head. “I’ll show you what happens when-“

“Not now.” Skarlet quickly said to herself, through clenched teeth, before she felt a subtle change overcome her. “Please, no!” At last, control slipped from her grasp as the demon was in command. Her pupils flashed a glowing shade of red, like a siren, unknowingly alarming those around her that the demon has her influence now. She stared coldly into the soul of the woman opposite, with her eyes narrowed and teeth clenched in an expression of contained anger.

“Hit me again...” she growed. “ _I fucking dare you!_ ”

Clouded by her own entitled arrogance, Priscilla made the stupid decision to go for another strike on Skarlet. But it ended up being a big mistake as her hand was caught in mid-attempt, as the men behind her looked on, anticipating a fight breaking out.

“This is gonna be good.” Cody became excited at the sight in front of him.

Hearing the fool behind her, Skarlet grabbed onto Priscilla’s arm and whipped her into the man, knocking them both down to the floor. She leaped over them and began to punch at the defenceless woman underneath her.

“Ahahaha! YES! Let there be blood!” The demon encouraged the violence taking place.

“For Argus’ sake, somebody break it up!” The bartender ordered, summoning the rest of the people in the bar to try and restrain the furious blood mage, not knowing that her mind was out of control, courtesy of the demon inside. One man managed to pry Skarlet off of Priscilla, giving some people a good view of the injured lady. It appears that she had marks on her arm, where she had been scratched, drawing blood as a result, indicating that Skarlet was attempting to feed off her bloodstream. This made the entire scene feel like an exact repeat of what went down yesterday, where she brutalised Baraka and tried to drink his blood, until she was separated by some guards.

“Unhand me!” The demon-influenced bloodsucker yelled before delivering a sharp elbow to his nose, potentially breaking it. He let go and clutched at his now-bloody nose before getting angry himself. 

“GrrrrAGH! Stop it!” Skarlet cried as she clutched at her head, trying to cleanse her mind. It was then, the demon soon decided that it’s work is done and soon gave control back to Skarlet, who’s glow in her eyes began to fade back to her regular shade, as they remained open in shock of her own actions. A feeling of dread overcame her as she began experiencing the worst-case scenario around her, letting her fury loose in public.

Skarlet wasn’t able to remain in shock for long as she needed to duck out of the way, for the injured man grabbed a nearby drink mat and hurled it in her direction. The kunoichi dodged it and it ended up hitting another man in the face. This spawned a chain reaction as the other man got angry and began throwing things. Things soon began to spiral out of control, for a bar fight has officially broken out. Shouting and commotion replaced the earlier pleasant conversations and the sounds of broken glass being thrown and shattered drowned out the noise of classic rock music on the speakers.

“I’m getting outta here.” The bartender said before dashing off. Skarlet had the same idea as him, seeing an exit nearby, to escape the bar brawl. However, what she didn’t expect to see was the livid face of Kitana Kahn, staring right at her. Behind the Empress was Erron Black, facepalming at the scene unfolding, as well as four Tarkatan officers, led by Baraka, now wearing a protective face mask for his injuries causes by Skarlet, who he glared menacingly at. The blood mage stared back, assuming that either Erron had not told him about her apology, or he did not accept it, and was still mad at her.

“Take care of this commotion inside.” She said to the two guards, and Erron, to which they nodded and went inside, where the gunslinger fired his pistols in the air and yelled “ALRIGHT, CUT IT OUT!” effectively putting a quick stop to the fight.

“And you.” Kitana turned to Skarlet. “I want to have an intervention with you. Right. Now.” She said in a calm accent, trying to hide her rage, but it was clearly showing through the furious expression in her narrowed blue eyes and bent eyebrows.

Skarlet looked on, not showing any fear on the outside but dreading what is to come on the inside. They soon headed back to the palace, with Skarlet being escorted by Baraka and the other guard, away from the bar.

_(Kitana’s throne room, back at the palace)_

As soon as the door to her throne room closed, Kitana let loose a wave of fury upon her councillor.

“SKARLET! WHAT THE ACTUAL F-”

“Let me explain, Your Highness-“ Skarlet began.

“I saw exactly what happened back there. It’s one thing to damage a member of our council, but to stoop as low as attacking innocent citizens? I have the right mind to have you immediately expelled from the Council!”

“She attacked me first! What was I supposed to do? Let her kill me?”

“You could’ve done literally anything other than start a full-scale bar fight and cause thousands of goldkoins worth of damage, which will be coming out of your monthly payment!”

After her scathing rant, Kitana managed to take a few deep breaths, still angry over what has transpired recently, involving Skarlet.

“So,” she continued, “You are going to tell me why you are acting out, because this is simply unacceptable behaviour coming from you.” Her demeanour shifted into despair as she continued to reprimand Skarlet. “You don’t seem like the Skarlet I know.”

Skarlet’s fear now began to show on her face, as she was now being pressurised by her Empress to reveal the methods behind her madness and she knew that it was because of her Lycanthropy that she contracted a few days prior. But she promised herself that she would NEVER tell anybody about it, for she feared that Kitana would truly turn her back on her. And Skarlet did not want that to happen whatsoever, especially during times like these. Like what Priscilla from earlier needed to to, Skarlet forced herself to make up a lie to explain her fits of rage, but unlike the woman from earlier, Skarlet had a better reason to lie about her curse.

“Tell her the truth!” Came a dark voice from within her mind. The demon has returned to taunt Skarlet. “Let us see how she reacts to who you really are.”

A low growl from Skarlet indicated that she wanted to be left alone by the demon. With all of that in mind, the red vixen took a few deep breaths and said, “You want to know? Fine.” And she hesitated, her memory bank opening up to look for an excuse. She needed to make sure it was effective, but also realistic, so that Kitana wouldn’t get even more suspicious. Eventually, after a few moments to search, she came up with the perfect lie, to justify it.

“Do you remember an incident that happened between me and you the other day?”

“What do you mean?” Kitana questioned her.

“It was when we were discussing possible strategies against the Lycans and then things got heated between you and me, which led to you...assaulting me.” Skarlet continued, reminding the Empress of what went down a few days ago. She was referring to the incident when Kitana slapped her across the face. This was a very similar situation to what she experienced in the bar earlier with Britt, but unlike what happened with Kitana, Skarlet actually lost her temper and lashed out, which led to the bar fight happening.

“Ah, yes! Now I recall what happened. But what about it?”

“I understand that we made amends soon afterwards, but...ever since, I haven’t really felt the same.” She continued to explain. “You see, I have all the respect in the world for you, since your kindness accepted me into Outworld, where nobody else had before, so to see you abruptly lash out at me was such a shock to me, and I have never fully recovered from it. I felt like...I might have lost a bit of respect for you there, and that is what I fear: Losing people. Whether it may be physically or mentally, I fear that the strong connections that I have made with the people I know, who changed my life for the better, could snap at any moment if any of us steps out of line, and since then, that moment has traumatised me. Whenever somebody got up in my face, or taunted me, like some rival, I immediately get reminded of your attack and I unleash that rage that I had previously contained when I refused to retaliate, because I would never dare do anything like that to you.” She began to get a bit emotional here, given what she has been going through for the past few days.

Throughout this entire explanation, it seems that Kitana failed to change her expression one bit, implying that she didn’t buy Skarlet’s story. But she did reach out a hand to grab her shoulder, showing that she did understand a bit.

“Why on earth would you go putting yourself through this, Skarlet?” She asked.

“It may not be much for you, but it means a lot coming from someone who’s lost a lot of people in her life. My mother, my father, my entire family. That’s why I tried turning over a new leaf, to end the bloodthirsty ways that Shao Kahn gifted me, but it seems like the exact opposite is happening. I’m...deeply sorry, my Empress. I wish I could’ve told you about this sooner.” And with that, she hung her head in shame.

Kitana’s tone became more reassuring. “It’s okay to have fears, but you shouldn’t really let them get to you. And that fear about losing our ‘connection’? I think it would take more than a simple slap across the face to even put a dent on it. We both knew that we were in the wrong that time and I quickly put it behind us, whereas you decided to open up the anger you contained, from when it happened. So you don’t need to fear it or beat yourself or anybody else up over it, Skarlet.”

With that, Skarlet began to feel slightly better about it, though it was merely a façade for Kitana, in order to hide the real reason for her outbursts. Even so, it was still somewhat of a realistic reason, for Skarlet did show some legitimate concern over her relationship with Kitana, following the slap.

“Thank you, Kitana.” Skarlet bowed to her before she was excused from the throne room, now feeling a bit more relaxed, knowing that she’s gotten a devil off of her back, in the form of the Kahnum.

“Lies are for the weak.” Came the demonic taunts from inside of her head.

“Silence! You’ve already caused enough chaos today.” Skarlet said to herself, making herself look unusual to the eyes of onlookers, who know nothing about her current condition.

“It wasn’t me, it was you! You simply gave in to the urge to seek blood.”

After that remark, Skarlet hung her head in shame, knowing that physically, it was her own actions that caused the destruction around her, although inside, it wasn’t her. As Skarlet left, Kitana sported a look of concern on her own face.

I should probably let her off for now, given what she’s going through, she thought to herself, still unknown about what Skarlet is really hiding from her. But as she went over to sit down and relax for a while, she heard a loud thud, coming from outside her throne room. She swiftly opened the left door and saw Skarlet being pinned to the wall by Devar, one of the Tarkatan soldiers, who glared at her furiously.

“You are out of control, Skarlet! And since Kitana Kahn’s done nothing to solve this, I WILL!”

“Let go!” Skarlet choked, her neck in Devar’s powerful grip. “Or you will...regret it.” The demon’s influence was starting to show.

“Are you going to fight back or let this scum outsmart a warrior like you?” The demon spoke, trying to conjure up a form of encouragement for Skarlet.

“Shut...up!” Came a response from the bloodbender, through gritted teeth and chokes, from the Tarkatan’s strong hand clamping round her throat.

“DEVAR! What are you doing!?” Kitana intervened, but the angry Tarkatan still kept his grip around Skarlet’s neck.

“I’m doing what should have been done yesterday!” Devar yelled.

“Unhand Skarlet this instant!”

“She deserves this!”

Much like when she was slapped by Priscilla earlier on, the Demon woke up inside of her mind and it’s rage took control of Skarlet’s body, indicated physically by a glow effect displaying on her ruby pupils.

“Right! You’re asking for a war and now you’ve got one, asshole!” The demon spoke, using Skarlet’s mouth and body to verbally express it. Kitana looked on and noticed this sudden mood swing from peril to fury.

“Skarlet, don’t do it!” She muttered fearfully. The blood mage narrowed her eyes and grasped at Devar’s hand with her left hand, distracting him and giving her enough time to create a dagger made out of blood, for which she used to stab him in the arm. The Tarkatan released a yowl of pain, clutching his injured appendage as Skarlet held on, digging the blade deeper and deeper, attempting to try and get it all the way through his arm, trying to slice through his veins and trying to taste his Tarkatan blood.

“I warned you!” Skarlet took the opportunity to go for another manoeuvre, but stopped in mid-attempt when she saw Kitana out of the corner of her eye, shocked at the scene in front of her. The demon noticed this and left Skarlet’s mind, leaving the vessel to deal with the situation she technically did not create herself. And with that, all of the rage from inside of Skarlet dissipated, leaving nothing but fear and dread. Her wide-open eyes lost it’s glow as she began to step away from the scene. Meanwhile, Devar was being restrained by a few other guards, including Baraka.

“I...I couldn’t control my-“ Skarlet tried to formulate a sentence but she was unable to as all of the stress that had been built up from the negative emotions inside was dangerously close to overflowing any second now. All she could do was breathe rapidly and look on in shock. Suddenly, Skarlet was unable to take the stress and took off, running past the guards beside her.

“Wait! Skarlet!” Kitana called out to her, but the blood mage was unable to hear her as she ran into her chambers, immediately locking the door shut.

At this moment, it was all too much for Skarlet to handle, for she dropped to her knees and let out a loud cry of despair, finally letting loose all of her emotions that had been contained. Every single drop of anger, fear, dread, insanity, everything began pouring out of her in the form of tears as she was reduced to a sobbing mess, curled up in a fetal position on the floor of her chambers. Skarlet has clearly been through so much for the past few days, which saw her becoming cursed to forcefully harm her closest allies and friends by day and become a deadly monster by night. All of this was too much and it has now led to her suffering this mental breakdown.

“I NEVER ASKED FOR THIS!” She yelled, after a few minutes of bawling her eyes out, before she took a nearby pillow, burying her face into it and soaking it with her tears, continuing to cry some more, as the emotional trauma literally burst from her body. She was left curled up in a fetal position, on the floor next to her bed. All of the cries were heard by the people that surrounded the brief scuffle from earlier, involving Devar, Baraka and even Kitana, the latter feeling absolutely dreadful for her friend, locked away in her own chambers. Everybody else left the area, except for Kitana, who stayed behind and placed a hand on Skarlet’s door, hanging her head low.

“I didn’t know that you were this torn up about the situation. I do worry for you, my friend.” She said her final words before leaving.

Meanwhile, Skarlet removed her face from her pillow, showing that her black eye-liner had been smudged around her face, even dripping down in small lines, when they were fused with her tears. All she wanted was for this horrifying business to be over and done with, so she can live her life without these types of supernatural dangers. Suddenly, she heard a mocking chortle inside of her own head, coming from the demon, watching over this broken sobbing mess of a woman in complete agony. “Go on! Keep crying like a little bitch!”

“STOP!” She yelled out, clutching her head and letting loose even more tears, before driving it violently into the wall, harming nobody but herself. After the violent action, her legs gave out and she collapsed onto the floor, still weeping.

“I just want to be normal again...” she said quietly, drained of all of her emotions. “Just let me go...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Skarlet. It’s bad enough that she’s become a werewolf but now she’s starting to lose her allies! But the planned ambush is yet to come. Will she carry it out successfully to free herself from this curse? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> And that’s Chapter 5 done! Take a look at the names in the bar scene and see if you can spot the references and nods I’ve hidden in there, especially if you’re a wrestling fan.
> 
> As you can tell, there’s going to be quite a lot of tearful, angsty moments in the story, but don’t worry. There will be a happy ending to it all. Stay tuned!


	6. Ambush (Third Night)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is the night of the planned ambush, but will Skarlet risk the life of her soulmate in order to make a deal with the devil?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _‘I can’t escape this hell,  
>  So many times I tried.  
> But I’m still caged inside.  
> Somebody get me through this nightmare,  
> I can’t control myself!’_
> 
> _‘So what if you can see,  
>  The darkest side of me.  
> No one will ever change this animal I have become!  
> And we believe,  
> It’s not the real me.  
> Somebody help me tame this animal...’ ___
> 
> _  
> _(Three Days Grace - Animal I Have Become)_  
> _

Like yesterday, Skarlet stayed in her room for the rest of the day, clearly more petrified for the safety of everybody around her. Nobody went in, nobody came out, it was just her in solitude, waiting for her inevitable transformation to come. And this was a worse instance than last night because Jade still hasn’t returned from Earthrealm yet, meaning that nobody was around to keep her under control and prevent the demon from fully coming out.

A knock was heard at her door and it continued for a few minutes until Skarlet snapped back “Leave.”

“Have it your way!” She heard the voice and made it out to be Baraka’s. She sighed and got up from her bed and walked to the door.

“Fine. What do you want?” She said in a sullen voice, listening to the visitor on the other side of her locked door.

“Black told me about your apology and I’m here to say that I accept it.” He said, reassuring the blood mage. “I also heard your conversation with the Empress so now I understand a bit more about what you’re going through.”

Skarlet felt a bit happier that amends were made following that altercation yesterday. “Thanks for accepting my apology. I hope I didn’t damage you too much.”

“The medics said I was fine and my nose was just bruised, rather than broken.” Came the gravelly voice of the Tarkatan General, who chuckled a bit. “At least you can live to tell the tale of how you beat a mighty Tarkatan to a bloody pulp.”

“Let that be a warning to Devar then.” Skarlet was slowly beginning to feel more relaxed, now that she was on good terms with Baraka. She looked over behind her and was surprised to see the full moon starting to peek out behind the clouds. She was worried that her metamorphosis was about to start and she needed to get out quickly.

“Before you leave, Baraka, could you possibly send a message to Kitana on my behalf.” She asked him, trying to hide her nervous feelings.

“What would that be?”

“Jade won’t be back in time to start her nightwatch shift, and there is nobody else to take over, since you’re likely busy guarding the weapon forgery, right?”

“Correct.”

“So could you possibly ask Kitana if it’s fine for me to take over Jade’s duties until she returns?” Skarlet said, trying to find a way to leave her self-confines.

Baraka mused for a second before he said “I’ll see what I can do.” And then he left.

The kunoichi waited in her chambers for a couple of minutes, taking the time to get a drink of water, before she heard a knock at her door, indicating Baraka’s return. But the voice coming from the other side was feminine, meaning that Kitana herself was making the decision.

“Are you sure you’re fit to take over for Jade tonight, Skarlet?” The kahnum asked her councillor.

“I’m sure that it will be fine, your Highness. There’s no person walking the streets at this time of night so I won’t be provoked.”

“If that’s what you want then I’ll allow it.” Kitana said, causing Skarlet to thank her afterwards and then back away from the door to breathe a huge sigh of relief.

“Tell Jade that I’m doing her shift when she comes back,” the blood mage said just as Kitana was leaving, “just so she knows where I am.”

“I’ll do my best to remember.” Kitana said before leaving.

As soon as Kitana left, Skarlet made a run for it, knowing that she did not have long before the full moon reaches it’s peak in the sky. She quickly jumped from her balcony to the ground outside the castle before she stopped, knowing that Kitana’s window was open. From that, she assumed that she was being watched by her, or a guard.

Right, she thought to herself, how am I going to get out of sight? She looked around, feeling her mingled blood beginning to flow at a rapid pace through her body, before she looked at the forest ahead of her. This gave her an idea. Skarlet placed her hand on the floor and launched a blood trail in the direction of the forest, until it reached a nearby bush, causing it to rustle. She then put on a confused face and acted like she was suspicious about some kind of activity going on in that area. After walking over to it, she saw ‘something’ dash into the forest, which gave her an excuse to chase after it, eventually getting her out of sight from any possible onlookers from the palace.

Once she stopped running, Skarlet got on one knee to catch her breath before she looked up at the sky, seeing the full moon at it’s apex. A look of dread overcame her as her eyes began changing from red to white, glowing as brightly as the moon she was staring at.

“Oh god...” she said, knowing that the demon taking over was inevitable, “I hope nothing catastrophic happens.” And with that, she let everything go, allowing her metamorphosis to begin, starting with her right hand growing small red hairs from out of the skin, before they became longer and longer, whilst long white claws replaced her fingernails. The growing fur spread all around the rest of her body, travelling up her arm and to her torso, where Skarlet felt more of it growing on her abdomen, and on her chest, looking down at her changes in fear. Luckily, like the previous night, the pain she felt was nowhere near what she suffered with on the first night.

Then, she began to feel the structural changes kick in, starting with her back and neck muscles starting to bulge out, as she heard the tight clothing around the torso separate from the powerful pressure. Each large tear in her attire revealed her naked back, every square inch of skin covered in crimson fur, as she felt it spread down to her legs. Meanwhile, Skarlet felt a shift at the sides of her head, her ears reshaping into points and moving to the top of her head, resembling the ears of a wolf. Below her waist, her leg muscles began expanding and convulging, causing her tights to rip and tear, like the clothing on her upper torso, showing skin which began to sprout red fur, like the rest of her body. Skarlet turned around, after feeling something tugging at her rear before seeing her wolf tail rip free from it’s clothing confine, making her entire body structure more and more animalistic by the second. After a few minutes of staring in fright at these changes, the bloodbender felt another one, in the form of her twisted feet erupting from her boots, clawed and reshaped like a wolf’s paw.

Skarlet looked down at her wolf form before she felt a few sharp pains coming from her jaw. As the red fur began to grow out of her face, her teeth began to sharpen into fangs and her nose blackened and morphed into a more feral shape. Suddenly, she let out a loud scream and clutched her head. She violently swung her own body around the dark forest, seemingly trying to fight against the demon for control of her body as a werewolf. However, she was losing as she saw her reflection in a nearby stream. A hybrid of beauty and beast stared back at her, eyes flashing from moonlight white to blood red before she closed them, accepting defeat.

“Damn it!” She yelled, feeling her negative emotions and fury crank up beyond eleven, and with the last of her own control, she managed to growl a warning “...I’ll be back”From there, the demon was under control of this vessel as Skarlet threw her head back and howled at the full moon in the sky, completing her transformation.

Behind her, Skarlet heard a loud, evil laugh of approval coming from the masses of trees. Braxus stepped out, with two Lycan soldiers, smiling sinisterly at what stood in front of him.

“Now that is the Skarlet I wanted to see tonight.” He said, holding out his hand, which Skarlet grabbed, smiling at him with evil intentions, fuelled by the devil in her.

“When do we begin, your Highness?” She flashed her razor-sharp teeth.

Braxus shared the same expression as her. “In due time, my sister. For I have the perfect plan for Jade...”

(Back at the Castle. 11:30pm)

Loud, quick footsteps filled the silence of the sleeping streets in the Outworld night, as they headed towards the castle, accompanied by frantic breathing. The hooded figure was let in by one of the female handmaidens and stepped in, taking off her hood to reveal the gorgeous face of Jade, returning from her travel in Earthrealm. However, such gorgeous face was filled with a look of worry, as she quickly paced up the steps and towards Kitana’s chambers before knocking on the door. Her frantic movements showed that something concerning was currently on her mind.

The empress opened the door to greet her best friend. “Oh, Jade, you’re back!” She greeted delightfully. “Did the peasants get the care packages alright?”

“I’m afraid that talk will have to wait Kitana. Where is Skarlet?” Jade asked, revealing the topic that was concerning her.

“Skarlet is currently covering your nightwatch shift so she should be outside the back of the palace.”

With that in mind, Jade thanked Kitana and dashed outside, to search for her friend, hoping that she hasn’t shifted yet. But little did Jade know that she was far too late.

“SKARLET!” The emerald defender called out to the distance. “Where are you?”

After a moment of hesitation, there was no answer. She continued to call out for her for a few more minutes before she slumped to her knees, more fearful than ever. Before she was about to get upset about possibly losing her friend, she noticed something on the ground. A small puddle of blood had formed before a trail began forming off of it, heading straight towards the forest in the distance. Jade followed the trail, which left behind a crimson streak and led her into the darkened mass of trees and wildlife at night. Once she entered the forest, she had lost sight of the blood trail before she began to look around on the ground for it.

Suddenly, Jade was startled by the sound of some feral growls coming from around her. She armed herself with her bo staff and her glaive, before looking all around the setting, looking for any possible attackers. It was then she saw some large beast lunging towards her, pouncing on her body and pinning her to the ground. A werewolf had caught her and is now close to impaling her skin with it’s teeth and claws. Luckily, Jade was able to fight her way out, kicking the wolf away before getting back up, threateningly pointing her staff at the growling creature. It lunged at her again but Jade parried it’s attack with a swing of her staff, hitting it across the torso, before running up to it and delivering a venomous punt kick to it’s head, knocking it down completely. As she came to her senses, she heard the growls of another Lycan behind her, ready to attack. But Jade was ready too, dodging it’s claws and cutting into its skin with her glaive. The other wolf recovered and soon Jade found herself surrounded by two werewolves, but she wasn’t afraid in the slightest. The night was filled with feral barking and pained grunts as Jade took on them both by herself, expertly parrying and avoiding every single attempt to attack her and retaliating with her own strikes from her staff and glaive, as well as her own body, until they were both down for the count.

“That was easy.” Jade breathed a sigh of relief before backing up into something large. Without looking back, she began to feel the blockage behind her, her hand meeting a coat of fur, before travelling downwards-

“Um...I don’t like where this is going.” A low, gruff voice stopped her before she turned around and yelped in shock and stumbled backwards, for Braxus was behind her this entire time.

“It can’t be...”

“Oh, I’m real, alright. It is I: Braxus, the Lycan King!” He declared proudly, spreading his arms out and presenting his beastly form to the Edenian warrior, in a theatrical manner. He slowly advanced towards Jade, like the predator he is, as she began to back up, slowly moving out of the forest.

“I must say, Jade, although I don’t like it when my comrades are taken out, I am quite impressed with your skill.”

“Lycans are my speciality.” Jade said back. “Besides, they’re all the same. Savage, brainless dogs who are always brawn over brain.”

“Your skills are those that I NEED for my cult.” Braxus smiled wickedly in approval. “I could use a powerful warrior like you.”

“Thanks for the offer,” Jade said before she retorted, “but I’m more of a cat person.”

And with the movements of a cat, she managed to dodge the incoming fist of the werewolf king, and land perfectly on her feet, her staff unsheathed. She decided to go for her own attack, but Braxus used only a single arm to block and absorb her strikes, which had little effect on him, before grabbing the weapon and using it as a rip-cord to pull Jade towards him and punch her down. He missed a stomp attack, but managed to deliver a brutal kick to Jade’s midsection as she was bent down. The beast grabbed her by the leg and delivered a few punches to her torso, but Jade parried the third strike by holding out her glaive, making Braxus impale his own hand on the blade, forcing him to drop her and hold his paw in pain. Eventually, after another minute of battling, where Jade failed to get Braxus off of his feet, the two were at a stalemate, standing nearby the back of the palace’s exterior.

The Lycan King laughed egotistically. “You’re going to need an entire army to take me down. Speaking of which...” he said, taking out a vial filled with a red substance, “You’ll have none!” He threw it a very good distance towards the castle, where it connected with the wall, shattering and splattering it with the red substance inside. Suddenly, red smoke began pillowing around the place as the brick walls grew a layer of red crystal, and grew up the structure of the castle, completely covering it in what seemed like a large shield, which essentially locked it down, as the seemingly impenetrable material blocked any form of escape, from the windows to the doors.

Inside the castle, Kitana, who had heard the sound of the shattering glass, ran over to the window, to find that she was blocked in by a red shield that Braxus has put over the entire building. The brightness also distorted the view, so she couldn’t see exactly what was going on, but she managed to make out the shape of the large dark spot, before she gasped.

“Braxus...”

Meanwhile, an evil laugh filled the air as the Lycan king took in Jade’s sudden misfortune. The Olivine Warrior looked back at the red barrier surrounding the castle, before unsheathing her glaive, furiously.

“Forget them. I only need a few slices to gut you and your friends.” She said. “Now come at me.”

It was then Braxus didn’t come at Jade, but merely stood upright and folded his arms, menacingly staring down his opponent as two wolf scouts walked into view on both his sides.

“Such a cowardly response! But nevertheless, I put your friends down easily, like the dogs they are, because they don’t know what I’m capable of.”

“I may not know much, either,” Braxus said, “but SHE does!”

“She?”

He stepped aside to see a cloaked and hooded figure step out from the dark depths of the forest. The figure unsheathed a dagger in it’s right hand before it began to extend into a longer blade. The hood was removed and this made Jade gasp in horror. With glowing red eyes of evil staring into her emerald green orbs, Skarlet, under corruption of the demon inside, stood before her in her Werewolf form, with a sinister smile on her face.

Jade began to slowly move forward in shock, not wanting to battle her longtime friend. “Skarlet...” she said, holding her hand out, “It’s me, Jade!”

Suddenly, the ruby creature lunged towards her, with her left knee extended outwards, smashing Jade across the face and knocking her down.

“I’m not as stupid as I look, Jade.” She spat back, venomously before stalking her friend, with bad intentions.

“Why are you doing this?” The two kunoichis were now standing, circling around each other in this confrontation.

“Braxus told me everything. He told me about how people were the real monsters. People like YOU!”

“What are you talking about?”

“This is your doing, Jade! Instead of helping me as I became this animal, you just stood there and watched me, like some sort of attraction, rather than a human being in agonising pain!”

“I...I didn’t know what to do! For god’s sake, snap out of it!” Jade’s fear was growing more by the second, in response to this sudden change in not only Skarlet’s form, but her personality as well.

“But don’t worry. You were right as well. You told me that this could be a blessing in disguise, and it is! Now I have my own family who truly understands my pain, not a gang of savages led by a heartless Empress!” Skarlet continued to speak the devil’s thoughts, shared by all Lycans about how they felt about Kitana and her allies. Jade knew that although it may seem like it physically, it was not Skarlet saying these things on the inside.

“But now, I think it’s time that you get to know how it feels to be rejected like some inhuman creature.” And with that, Skarlet unleashed her claws, ready to fight.

Jade reluctantly stood guard, with her staff in her hands. “I don’t see Skarlet on the inside, I see some soulless bastard controlling my friend. If you want to fight, beast, so be it!”

The wolf and the ninja prepared to do battle, lunging towards each other as Braxus watched from behind them. Meanwhile, Kitana and Baraka were trying to escape their confines, but to no avail.

“What sorcery is this!?” Baraka yelled. “I will have that mongrel’s head!”

The fight went on in the moonlight as Skarlet and Jade fought with their weapons, the sound of sharpened metal meeting hardened steel echoing in the night. Skarlet managed to distract Jade enough with the weapon fight for her to land a right jab to the side of her face. She went for a kick to her ribs but the emerald assassin caught it and tripped her with a sweep, before connecting with a hard punch to her gut. Jade went for another attack but Skarlet caught her arm and locked in a triangle choke, using her legs to squeeze the life out of Jade, with her ex-friend’s hand right in front of her. The blood wolf bared her fangs and attempted to sink her teeth into Jade’s flesh, but the green ninja used her upper body strength to slam the wolf to the ground, releasing her from the grip. Skarlet got back up and they resumed her fight, Jade dodging each of the blood mage’s attacks with her claws and teeth, whilst Skarlet got her own offence in, parrying Jade’s own strike attempts with some stabs to her limbs. Perhaps the thing that surprised Jade more was how Skarlet acted in kombat, compared to the other werewolves she battled earlier, because despite her mind being corrupted, she retained knowledge of her own fighting styles and Blood Magik. The red ninja conjured up a spear of blood and threw it in Jade’s direction, but she missed as the green ninja dodged each attempt before grabbing her staff and spinning it, each one hitting Skarlet across the head before she brought her weapon down on Skarlet’s temple, knocking her to the floor. Braxus watched on in concern, his ace card being pummelled by a human.

Jade stopped her assault now that her opponent was down. “Snap out of it! I know you’re in there, Skarlet, and I’m here to do whatever it takes to free you.”

In response to that, the blood-red eyes of the feminine Lycan snapped open before she jumped to her feet.

“You mean that weak little girl you called a friend?” She taunted. “That girl is DEAD! The blood is on your hands.”

“I had nothing to do with it-“

“You did this, Jade!” Came the roar of the animal. “You left me in agony, and now look at what I’ve become!”

“Please, just listen-!”

“YOU MADE ME THIS WAY!”

The wolf charged, tackling Jade to the floor when they began to fully brawl, punches being thrown every second of the fight. After a while, they were both separated and lunged towards each other, to deliver the final blow. Jade with her glaive and Skarlet with her dagger. The two sharpened steel weapons collided, with both women fighting for the upper hand. The weapons were soon dropped, following a long duel with no hits landed before the fists were brought out and the two kunoichis were left slugging it out with only their bare hands, throwing punch after punch at each other, powered by their own rage and will to fight on. This carried on for a full minute until both women stared each other down, both groggy from their bare-bones brawl, to the point where they were literally forehead to forehead, their heads connected, holding their bodies up as they snarled viciously in each other’s faces. It’s horrific to think that they were the best of friends and that this brutal fight is what Jade needs to do to try and free Skarlet from her hex. Jade pushed Skarlet back and went to throw another punch when all of a sudden, she felt something grip her ankle. Jade looked down and saw a blood tentacle, controlled by Skarlet, which she used to trip her up and then slam her to the ground, bouncing her into the air. Skarlet took aim with a blood spear in hand before throwing it at Jade, narrowly missing the vital organs in her chest but impaling her shoulder before she fell to the ground agains the castle wall with a loud thud.

Wearing a grin of masochistic joy, and with a small, sinister laugh, the red she-wolf stalked the fallen emerald, slowly prowling towards her like a predator advancing towards it’s prey. The area that they were in was out of view of Kitana on the inside, as it was blocked by the red barrier around the castle. Skarlet took out her dagger and dragged it across Jade’s left cheek, making a small cut across, which quickly began to draw blood. She grabbed Jade by the head and lifted it up.

“You’re all mine now, Jade.” She growled softly before giving a slow lick up the wound alongside the ebony’s face, which was full of nothing but absolute terror, witnessing the mind of her comrade slowly descend into animality.

“I...I know this isn’t you!” Jade cried out, fearing that this could be the end for her.

“I’m all that you have now,” Skarlet said to her, “And it’s going to be an absolute delight torturing you.”

Behind them, Braxus was starting to get excited at the scene in front of him. This was a being who basked in the slow, agonising torture of his enemies, reminding him of the revenge he took on his own father, slowly brutalising him before making the kill a long time later.

“Indeed it is...” he said to himself, looking on at how Skarlet acted.

“Think about it, Jade. All of this power, this strength, this feeling of knowing that there are people who truly understand the pain and struggles that you suffer from. And above it all, you get to do it all with me: your soulmate.”

“I don’t see my soulmate at all! You corrupted her, tainted her soul and took over her body!” Jade’s voice became more and more broken, at the sight of the beast of her friend on top of her. “You’re not the Skarlet I know and love!”

“I’m afraid you don’t have a choice. But that’s okay, for we shall be together forever. We can live as monsters and not be judged or looked down or disowned by anybody, because we’ll be a family!” And Skarlet ended her monologue with a gentle, sinister laugh, another new trait of her depleting humanity.

Seeing nothing but absolute devastation in the form of her friend succumbing to this beast, Jade began to weep, tears filling her eyes and travelling down her cheeks, including tracing a perfect line over the scar, where Skarlet had cut her.

“Yeah, keep crying like a little weakling.” The demon taunted. “When you’re a Lycan, you won’t feel such emotional suffering any more.”

Jade then spoke through her tears. “Y-you know what? Just kill me instead! As long as I get to be reunited with my lover, by body or by soul, I don’t care!” And with her voice full of ungodly sadness, she said in a weakened tone “I just want Skarlet back!”

And with those words and those tears, something happened inside the beastly vessel of Skarlet. Her blackened mind and heart began to fade and revert to it’s original form.

“What’s happening?” The demon was disintegrating in her mind by the second, replaced with the thoughts and feelings of Skarlet herself. On the inside, she began to feel less like a monster...and more like the human she once was. Memories of violence, fury, spite began to dissipate, and be replaced with the single image of an emerald, residing in her mind. The bright colour and shine reminiscent of the one she loves the most.

“Jade...”

Such changes were also happening on the outside, in response to Jade’s tearful actions. Her intense red eyes began to brighten and change colour, from red to amber, but Jade was unable to see it, blinded by her own tears. She turned back to Braxus, who was unable to see the change in colour, as he gave the sign to do the deed.

“Finish her!” He commanded, slicing his finger across his throat, in a cutthroat motion.

Skarlet nodded back and grabbed Jade by the throat with her left hand. The emerald ninja continued to cry through chokes, as the Lycan brought her face to her own. A pair of closed eyes met a pair of wet, teary eyes, before they opened, showing bright white pupils. The emotionally heartwarming events had caused Skarlet to gain enough of humanity in the presence of her lover, to gain control of her mind under her body as a werewolf.

“Jade,” she whispered, “it’s me.”

Jade’s vision became clear as Skarlet wiped away her tears with a furred hand. Suddenly, her emotions overflowed with joy, seeing her soulmate as a human on the inside again, after having thought to have lost her forever.

“My god, Skarlet...” she began to say, but was immediately cut off, silenced by a single finger on her lips. 

“It’s going to be okay now. I’m here...with you.” Jade was overwhelmed with joy and relief, but Skarlet needed to conceal it for her plot. “We’ll take the Lycans out together.” Skarlet smiled at Jade, who returned it with a kiss on the cheek. 

Meanwhile, Braxus raised an eyebrow and walked over, curious as to why Skarlet was hesitating.

“What are you waiting for? Finish the job!” He said impatiently, with his risen allies on each side of him.

Elsewhere, staring down through her obscured vision, Kitana also saw the commotion.

“What’s going on?”

“I have no clue, your Highness.” Baraka spoke next to her, his mind also in a state of bewilderment at the scene outside, which they are unable to fully see what’s going on.

The blood mage raised her hood up over her head and placed her mask on the lower part of her face, concealing her animalistic visage, before standing up, over a defenceless Jade.

“You’re right, Braxus, this is my lucky day.” She said, ominously. “Because I get the best of both worlds: Jade lives...and you DIE!” She abruptly threw two blood spears at Braxus’ shoulders, knocking him down before trapping one of the werewolves in a trail of blood vines. She dashed over to the other Lycan and unleashed a flurry of powerful kicks, catching it across the jaw with a powerful superkick to knock it down. Then, after unsheathing her claws, she made a quick but deep slash across it’s throat, killing it and spilling blood.

Kitana saw the silhouette from inside the castle, noticing the ears and tail of that being a Lycanthrope, but she couldn’t make out who it could possibly be.

“Baraka, look!” She called over her general to look at the turn of events unfolding. “It seems that one of the werewolves has turned against Braxus and is fighting his soldiers.”

“Impossible!”

Skarlet turned over to see the other soldier break free from it’s grasp, before charging over to Skarlet, before pouncing on her, paw on her throat, and knocking her to the ground. It prepared to make a kill similar to what the blood mage did to his partner in crime, but was briefly distracted by Jade’s glaive hitting him in the back with the blunt jewel that held each razor blade together. As it looked over to her menacingly, Skarlet took the opportunity to lower his head down and take a bite out of his shoulder, sinking her fangs deep. She even managed to tear a bit of flesh off, causing it to jump back and howl in pain, before she spat it out in disgust. Suddenly, the glaive came back towards the wolf, before slicing his head off in one clean pass. The deadly boomerang returned to the hand of it’s owner, who stood up to team with her lover.

“We really do make quite a pair, Skarlet.” She said with a smile.

“On that, I can agree on.” The red wolf smiled back before both women turned their attention to Braxus, recovering from the attack.

Inside the castle, Kitana continued to spectate in shock, for Jade was teaming up with the wolf who has just betrayed their adversaries and is now staring down the Lycan King. She turned to Baraka.

“Get the rest of the soldiers ready at the back door, for when this spell eventually wears off.” She ordered. Baraka returned her command with a salute before leaving her chambers to assemble the army.

“Why!? WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS, YOU BACKSTABBING HARLOT!?” Braxus yelled at Skarlet

“Did you really think I would sell my soul and my friend to the devil?” Skarlet questioned. “You mongrels really are as stupid as legend has it.”

Braxus held on to his left shoulder, which was beginning to leak blood from where Skarlet impaled it with one of her spears. The stream of blood formed a red puddle on the floor in front of him. The blood mage reached her hand out, collecting the blood in her palm until it formed into a red liquid sphere.

“For once, I say you should keep your blood to yourself!” She said before launching the orb, at a high speed, into Braxus’ torso, before exploding and sending him to the floor. Both women walked over to the fallen King, each placing a foot over his arms.

“Your streak of evil ends today, Braxus.” Jade chimed in, before taking her staff out, ready to strike. However, Braxus’ hand was free and he used it to grab hold of a charm that he began to shake in his hand, before his body started to glow. After the glow intensifies, his body vanished in a flash of light, robbing Skarlet and Jade off the opportunity to finish him off. The red ninja and the green ninja looked at each other as the glowing moonlight lit up the darkness.

“I had a plan all along, and it worked to perfection.” Skarlet smiled behind her mask.

“So you intentionally let the demon in?” Jade questioned her.

“Yes. Knowing that triggering an emotional event between two soulmates would keep it at bay, I had this entire thing set up.”

“But you’re still a werewolf. What are you going to do now?”

“There’s only one thing left that I need to do, Jade. I looked it up this afternoon, but it can only be done by someone who has contracted Lycanthropy.”

“And what would that be?”

Skarlet’s smile grew wider, but Jade couldn’t really see it, so she intensely narrowed her eyes, suggesting some macabre intentions. “Kill him.”

Suddenly, there was a loud smashing sound. Both women turned to the direction of the castle to see it’s crimson barrier shatter and fall into pieces, finally freeing the people trapped inside. As soon as it happened, a horde of Tarkatan soldiers burst out of the back gate, advancing towards where Skarlet and Jade were. One of them, Devar, lunged towards the beast that he saw in front of him, before he was tripped up by the Tarkatan General himself, Baraka, right as he was close to impaling the she-wolf.

“Do not try anything stupid this time, Devar.” He growled at the disobedient grunt on the floor, before facing Skarlet in front of him, who had her face concealed so that he wouldn’t recognise her, but still had fear on her mind, knowing that she was face to face with the one who had always despised werewolves since his father was killed, and now she was one. But to her surprise, he began to speak formally and calmly.

“Coming from one who despises your kind,” he said in a stoic voice, “I am here to simply say...thank you. Though unexpected, your betrayal of that bastard, Braxus, resulted in the saving of Miss Jade and on behalf of the Outworld Monarchy, we would like to offer you our gratitude.” And with that, he bowed, with the entire army.

Saying nothing, to keep the truth from slipping out, Skarlet simply bowed with him. Baraka noticed the lack of speech and actions, so he turned to Jade, with an eyebrow raised in confusion.

“They prefer to not reveal themselves at this time, Baraka.” Jade explained, making up a false excuse to prevent Skarlet from being exposed. “So do try and have some respect for their privacy.”

“Very well.” Baraka said before turning to the female Lycan. “Follow me. The Empress would like to see you...”

As soon as he turned away, Skarlet looked at Jade, her seemingly-emotionless blank eyes showing fear, before she was escorted into the castle by the guards.

(Kitana’s Chambers, Outworld Palace)

Skarlet stood in front of Kitana, her face and body still concealed so she couldn’t see her. The location that they were in was Kitana’s own bedroom. She looked around the entire setting, seeing shelved packed with everything from common ornaments to priceless relics. The colours of the walls consisted of different variations of the colour blue, which made Skarlet’s own red attire stand out among everything else.

“I may not know who you are, but even I must admit that you positively surprised me, with the act of saving my closest ally from Braxus and the Lycanthropes.” She said, in her regal tone. “And for such act, I would like to thank you, as well as pardon you from any possible crimes and sanctions, that are placed upon a person under Lycanthropy.”

The wolf in front of her did not speak, but did bow, showing that she was thankful of Kitana’s approval. This caused the Empress to get quite curious.

“Now, I understand that you prefer not to reveal your identity, but I am one person who likes to know who our hero truly is, so I kindly request that you show your face, or at least speak to me.” She calmly ordered.

“As you wish, your Highness.” Came the muffled voice behind the red animal’s mask. Heeding the request of the Empress and no long able to keep her curse concealed, her paws reached up to her hood and removed it, presenting the black head of hair, containing red, blood-like streaks, and tied in a ponytail. Among them, stood a pair of red wolf ears, pointing upwards from out of her head. Once Kitana saw the top of the creature’s head, she immediately got reminded of Skarlet’s own hairstyle, and her eyes began to slowly widen in disbelief. Surely it couldn’t be, she thought to herself. Then, she looked down at the body, seeing a wolf tail hanging down the figure’s lower half, coming out from above her behind, and at the sides, she noticed the hands, resembling wolf paws and covered with a thick shade of red fur. The crimson colour was instantly noticed, and she was reminded of Skarlet’s association with that particular colour. The hands began to move upwards to her face, where they grabbed on to the sides of the mask, removing it and exposing the face. After a second of looking, Kitana gasped in horror at what was staring back at her, with glowing white eyes. What she saw was the face of a very familiar person, with fangs instead of teeth, a nose shaped like that of a wolf, and a shading of blood-red fur covering most of the skin. But the shape was what made it noticeable, particularly, the round jawline, the thick red lips, the black eye liner, everything that resembled the one person that was currently on her mind. Kitana saw in front of her that the werewolf was not one of Braxus’ former allies, but one of her loyal friends.

“Skarlet!?”

A sullen look spread across the face of the blood mage/wolf hybrid in front of her, presenting what she has now become to the Empress.

“Indeed, it is me, your Highness.” She said, sorrowfully.

A few tears began to shed from the sea-blue eyes of the Empress, but she managed to barely compose herself, still in a state of despair.

“I...I can’t believe it!” She said. “How could this even happen to you!? You told me you weren’t bitten the other day!”

“I know, but when I disposed of the wolf, it managed to catch it’s skin on the edge of a broken window and then I unknowingly absorbed it’s blood that drew, which mingled with my own and corrupted my DNA.” Skarlet explained. “So now every night, when the full moon emerges, I become this...this monster!”

Stress upon stress began to be inflicted on Kitana’s mind as she was reduced to clutching her own head. She couldn’t cope with the fact that one of her closest allies just revealed herself to be a werewolf and it was because of her uncontrollable blood magik. It was then Skarlet reached a paw out, placing it onto her shoulder, looking like she had something else to confess.

“Kitana...” she began. “About that intervention earlier on, where I told you the motives behind my violent outbursts?”

“Yes?”

“Well, the story I told you was only half-true. The other reason is this: “

“Ever since my first transformation a few nights ago, it was revealed that there was some sort of demon inside of me, trying to control my actions and emotions in my wolf form. It caught me off guard and took control, changing my mindset into that of a vicious animal, which led to me killing some innocent bystander. And I knew that it was not me, for I had previously turned over a new leaf when I joined you.” Skarlet explained, finally spilling out the truth that she had been keeping a secret for quite a while. “However, it was not just at night, but by day as well, when it had control over my emotions, like when I sparred with Baraka, my rage spiralled out of control and I ended up injuring him, nearly killing him! And since then, I have been trying to keep the beast under control, but it hasn’t been easy. I...I even tried to kill Jade earlier!”

Kitana looked on through this entire explanation, with a look of shock on her face, know aware of the truth told to her, the motived behind Skarlet’s madness. But the fact that the blood mage had caused so much destruction over the past few days got her blood boiling.

“Why didn’t you tell me this sooner!?” She exclaimed in frustration.

“Knowing this would be your reaction, that’s why.” Skarlet said. “I didn’t want to put even more stress upon you, considering the current events that are taking place.” She stood up straight and prepared to leave. “And now I’m going to take all this stress away right now.”

Kitana walked over to the departing blood mage, to stop her from leaving.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’m going out to kill Braxus.”

The reason Kitana was beginning to object was due to a new policy she has recently included for those who show any possible symptoms of Lycanthropy, and that was to remain in quarantine, following 6:00pm. Plus, she didn’t want any more carnage to be caused by the demon inside of Skarlet.

“Absolutely not!”

These words caused the ruby wolf to stop opening the door and turn around slowly.

“What was that?” She asked.

“You have to follow the quarantine guidelines like everybody else, Skarlet. It’s for the best.” Kitana explained, trying to enforce the policies they had recently agreed to.

“I’m sorry but I will do no such thing. Braxus must be killed to end this curse.”

“That is blasphemy, Skarlet.” Kitana did not budge on her stance. “I told you, we do not have the resources to go out and hunt the Lycans. You need to be confined to this castle, to prevent you from causing any more casualties.”

“I told you, it’s not even my fault that such things are happening!”

“Or to at least keep your demons under control, like you explained to me earlier, especially during the night. For Argus’ sake, Skarlet, do you now what times we are living in now?”

“You don’t understand-“

“I understand everything about what you’re going through.”

Such words got Skarlet’s blood boiling, upon hearing them. For it is clear that there is more to it than just becoming a monster every night that could potentially pass the curse onto everybody else. And Kitana saying that she ‘knew everything’ was an insult to what she had been through over the past few days.

“Alright! If you understand everything Kitana, then what have you done to contribute!?” The blood mage burst out in rage. “I have spent hours upon hours of researching how to control my demons and how to end this curse and now I know. What have you been doing!? I don’t see you trying to help because you DON’T know the full story!”

“You will calm yourself, Skarlet-“

“Why should I!?” The kunoichi was clearly getting angrier by the second, at Kitana’s words. “You have done almost nothing to help, just making ridiculous policies that only help us temporarily, and insisting that we don’t fight back and just let them kill us! So you don’t know ANYTHING about what I’ve been suffering with, you know nothing about the animal I have become!” It was at this point that her eyes began to flash an amber colour. Although the demon wasn’t under control, she was clearly in a fit of anger at the moment.

“You want to know something else? I despise Braxus as much as the next person,” she continued in her rant against the Empress, “but I have no shame in saying that he isn’t wrong about you. You clearly have no heart against those suffering from this.”

These words struck Kitana like knives and like what her own did to Skarlet, she got in her councillor’s face, seething with rage.

“You will not disrespect your Empress like this!” She roared in her face before giving her a hard shove. “Maybe it’s because YOU don’t know that I can’t just conjure this hex away in an instant, unlike what you expect me to do! So what do you want from me, Skarlet!?”

“What I want is for you to UNDERSTAND!” Skarlet retaliated with her own fury. What started out as a peaceful, but tragic conversation soon turned into a dangerous argument, one which both women wanted to avoid from the start.

“YOU should be the one understanding reality! And that is that we are low on resources and cannot afford to go out and kill them just to free one person from this curse!”

“You have no idea how much I’m going through right now, in fact ALL of the other people who have contracted this curse, Kitana! That’s why I’m taking matters into my own hands, like what you should’ve done in the beginning instead of assaulting your ministers like some tyrant!”

“Do not force my hand, you ungrateful bitch!” The rage was clearly getting out of hand as Kitana had to resort to using insults.

“UNGRATEFUL!? I was the one who had to put up with you over this period! I was the one who refused to retaliate when you assaulted me! I was the one who lied not only to save myself, but to save you, so mind your tongue and start showing some damn gratitude yourself, you soulless harlot!” Skarlet continued to unleash her own form of anger upon the Empress.

It was then that the rage bottled up inside Kitana broke through, as she lunged her hand forward, ready to strike the she-wolf in front of her, but was shocked to see that the only impact that her fist had was coming into contact with the hand/paw hybrid of Skarlet, grabbing her hand before it hit her face again. She looked into the amber eyes of Skarlet, surprisingly not flashing red, given the current circumstances, where the Demon would have been awoken by now. This showed that it was not the demon influencing Skarlet’s actions, but her own.

“Unhand me, Skarlet!”

Skarlet did nothing, but held Kitana’s hand in her clutches, whilst menacingly staring down her with her yellow eyes, whilst her fangs were bared in rage.

“The best part is this: my demon is doing none of this,” she said, with ominous intentions, “SO THIS IS HOW I REALLY FEEL ABOUT YOU!”

And with that, she threw her closed fist forward until it struck her Empress across the face, in an action that mirrored Kitana’s own a few days ago, the tension building up too high for the furious atmosphere to be contained. However, this strike in particular was not due to anger boiling over, but fuelled by an immense hatred that Skarlet has now gained towards Kitana. Upon the punch connecting, Kitana was knocked down to the floor, clutching the side of her face, as a large bruise began to form. Unlike the actions caused by corruption of the demon, Skarlet felt no shame at all, given how Kitana has treated her at this moment, as she stood over the fallen Empress.

“This is for the best, Kitana.” She said. “As of now, our alliance and our relationship IS OVER!” She followed it up by leaving her chambers, snapping the door shut behind her. And it was clear that the positive relationship kept between the Empress and the blood mage has officially been shattered, following this altercation. But it wasn’t only because of animosities rising between the two.

As Skarlet stepped out of the room, she came face to face with Baraka, Erron and some of the Tarkatan soldiers, who looked on in shock, she had revealed herself as a Lycan.

“The truth cannot be contained any longer, everyone.” She addressed the small crowd, still hiding a bit of rage from earlier. “This is what I have become! A monster! You all wanted to know why I’ve been acting out recently and THIS is why! Now, if you want to harass me or even execute me, then feel free to do so, seeing as you despise werewolves so much!”

Perhaps the one who was most shocked by this was Baraka. The tough general who had a seething hatred for werewolves was clearly looking on in shock at one in front of him, for it was one of his allies.

“My god...Skarlet!” He said, on the verge of shock. “I should have known about your curse! I never knew what you were really going through yesterday and I’m sorry for doing so.”

“No hard feelings, comrade.” She said in a low, tone, now depleted of any fury shown towards the Empress from earlier.

“Yes,” she continued to speak to the people in front of her, “I am under the curse of Lycanthropy, which has explained my actions that I have committed across the past few days.”

“It was because of some ‘demon inside’, correct?” Erron spoke up, showing that he and the others have been listening to the conversation between her and Kitana.

“Correct, Erron.”

“Wait.” Baraka chimed in. “What did just you do to Kitana!?” He snapped out of the state of shock that he was in to address the situation that he heard, but not saw.

Skarlet looked back at the closed door of the Empress’ Chambers with a grim look on her face.

“She is nothing to me now. And for all of your safety, I’m leaving.” She was briefly stopped by Baraka, but grabbed his hand and looked him dead in the eye. “I’m sorry, but this is for the best. If Braxus doesn’t die, then I’m stuck like this. And so are the other victims. I’m merely doing everybody in Outworld a favour. Farewell.”

Once she finished, she quickly moved to her Chambers before locking the door. Upon entering, Skarlet saw a picture of her, with Kitana, a symbol of their strong bond with each other. The red wolf glared down at the photo, blank white eyes holding back explosive emotions, before throwing it over her shoulder, without looking back. It fell to the floor and the glass frame shattered, causing a large tear in the picture itself, which officially symbolised the end of their friendship.

Meanwhile, in her own Chambers, Kitana has recovered from being assaulted, but she wore a furious look on her face. The first thing her eyesight came across was a picture of her and Skarlet together on the mantlepiece, in a frame made out of crystallised blood, that Skarlet had crafted herself, as a gift for Kitana. Typically, when Kitana looked back at the picture, happy memories flowed through her mind, about the times that they spent together. Now, after the altercation that just happened, Kitana picked up the picture and stared at it, seeing red.

“I trusted you...” she growled. “I accepted you...” and her voice grew louder until she yelled out “I LOVED YOU!” And with the strength fuelled by fury, she launched the photo at the wall, shattering the delicate frame upon impact, with a broken shard of glass tearing the photo itself in half. After her outburst of anger, the emotion inside Kitana depleted and dissipated until there was nothing but sadness, as a source of negativity. It got to the point where she was reduced to a state where she was on her knees sobbing in anguish.

Skarlet sat on her bed with her head buried in her paws, brooding over the fact that the worst-case scenario has officially happened. Her strongest bond with the Empress of Outworld, the one who took her in and accepted her as a human being, and not a starving leech, has completely been destroyed. She stood up and walked over to the shattered mess of what was once their bond, before reaching down and picking up the half of the picture that had Kitana on it, standing proudly, with what would’ve been alongside Skarlet herself, who was left kneeling down at the remains, like a funeral of their relationship, killed by hatred and spite.

“I-I’m sorry, Kitana,” she said to herself quietly, “but I’m afraid that this is for the best.”

“Why would you do this to me Skarlet?” Kitana wept, soaking her bedsheets with her tears. “I thought we shared such a special bond together!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn. That’s a lot to take in. So Skarlet swerved Braxus and fell out with Kitana and is now setting off to kill Braxus to end this curse. How far does she go? And how will Kitana respond? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! Whether you’re alone, like me, or with a significant other, I hope you have such a blessed day! Next chapter features a cameo from a fan favourite, with a bit of extra (non-canon) backstory added so stay tuned!


	7. Regret (Fourth Day)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With tensions overflowing all around her, Skarlet leaves, not wanting to cause any more carnage around her friends. She sets out to end her curse, but not without a run-in with an old comrade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ‘Take a look at me now,  
> See what I’ve become,  
> I will no longer feed the machine,  
> Can’t control the monster in me, no  
> The way that I feel  
> Makes it harder to breathe  
> When I’m thinking about you, the monster is real.’
> 
> ‘Oh, o-oh, the monster is real.  
> Oh, o-oh,  
> I’ll be in heaven when I’m giving you hell  
> Like I’m Godsent.’ 
> 
> (Smash Into Pieces - Godsent)

Jade awoke to the sound of scraping metal, coming from Skarlet’s Chambers above her. She had previously fallen asleep in trauma, following the night before, where she witnessed at first hand her friend as a savage animal, toying with her emotions and getting close to killing her. But now she has woken up confused, about the noise coming from her friend’s room. The green lady got out of bed and hurriedly dressed herself in a black and dark-green robe before leaving her room, travelling up the staircase and reaching the door of the Blood Mage’s chambers. She initially hesitated at first, knowing that Skarlet would rather not be disturbed, since she was suffering from so much and that one wrong move could cause some damage to her own body. As she continued to think about whether or not she should let herself in, Baraka passed by, greeting her.

“What are you doing, waiting outside Skarlet’s door?” He asked her.

“I need to talk to her.” she responded. “It’s about last night.”

“I do not think that is a wise idea, Jade.” Baraka said in a somber tone.

“Why not?”

“From what I’ve heard, there was a fight between her and Kitana, and this led to her announcing that she was ‘leaving’ for her and everyone else’s safety.” Baraka gave Jade a brief description of what happened last night, since Jade was busy getting her battle wounds tended to at that time.

The emerald assassin listened to Baraka’s words with shock in her eyes. “I don’t believe Skarlet would go this far with her words.”

“I don’t either, but this was said when her demon was not under control.” Upon saying that, it was confirmed that now everybody in the castle was aware of Skarlet’s curse.

“I need to discuss things with her, Baraka. Just to make sure she’s okay and maybe even convince her to change her mind.”

Baraka decided that Jade was able to make her own decisions so he sighed, “Fine, but I must warn you, she could flip out at any second if you don’t play your cards correctly.” And with that, he walked off to resume his duties. With the Tarkatan General’s warning in mind, Jade decided to take the risk and perform the dangerous task of knocking on the door. After the first time, she was met with silence so she knocked again and even called out her name. “It’s me, Jade.”

The scraping of metal behind the closed door came to a stop, followed by a sigh before Jade heard the door unlock. Once it opened, it revealed the broken look of her soulmate, Skarlet. Her eyes looked bloodshot and quite swollen, as she had been upset the night before, and her black makeup had been smeared in a mess across the skin around her eyes, some of it creating a dripping effect down her cheeks.

“What do you want, Jade?” She said in a low, depressed voice.

“I just came to check on how you were doing after last night, with Kitana.” Jade said.

“Baraka told you about what happened, didn’t he?” Jade nodded. “I no longer associate myself with some heartless human being like her!”

This venomous line caused Jade to widen her eyes in shock. Given that Kitana and Skarlet were close to each other, it was a surprise to see that Skarlet now completely resented her.

“Why on earth would you say such things about the Empress!?”

“Because, apparently, I was the ‘ungrateful one’ all along, because I called her out on doing very little to deal with the werewolf situation, whereas I have devoted hours upon hours of my spare time researching and finding a way to free myself from this wretched curse.” The red kunoichi began to rant, in a repeat of what happened the night before.

“I’ll be sure to speak to Kitana later on, so I can get both sides of this story.” Jade said, remaining in a state of shock from those choice words.

The bloodbender scoffed. “As if I would care about what she has to say. Besides, I won’t be there to hear it.” And with that, she went over to her bed, where Jade saw a large duffel bag, with a singular strap. Inside it, she noticed a few bottles of water, some vials of blood and a few of Skarlet’s favourite weapons. She saw the blood mage reach for something on her windowsill, revealed to be a necklace with a heart made from a jade stone. The blood mage stared at it with an emotion-filled smile, as it reminded her of her soulmate, before delicately placing it in the pocket of her bag, careful not to harm it in any way, shape or form. Out of the corner of her eye, Jade spotted something strange on the floor. What she saw was a makeshift crossbow, made from pieces of wood and metal, that came from her bed frame, which she saw was quite damaged. She walked over to it, trying to pick it up before the Blood Mage stopped her, picking the weapon up herself.

“What do you think? I made it all by myself.” Skarlet asked, looking back at the wreckage that was the edge of her bed.

“Impressive job, but why on earth did you spend all this time making a crossbow?” Jade responded with her own question.

“Didn’t you hear? I’m leaving to go and hunt Braxus myself.” Skarlet detailed her plan to Jade, which included leaving behind the only home that she had been welcomed in all her life.

After a moment of silence as Skarlet finished packing her belongings, Jade stepped in “You don’t have to do this.”

“It’s for the best, Jade. I feel like I’m completely out of control now.” The red ninja explained. “Besides, I wouldn’t want to live in the same place as Kitana anymore.”

She stood up, collecting her crossbow, as well as her arrows, made from silver to defend herself against the wolves, and placing them in her bag. After that, she slung it over her shoulder and headed for the door. But was surprised to see Jade step in front of it, with a defiant look on her face.

“Jade.” Skarlet said with a deadpan look on her face and a tone of forced kindness. “Please move out of the way.”

“I’m not letting you leave, Skarlet.”

“And why’s that?”

“We can help you control your curse.” Jade said.

“And what do you plan to do? Keep me quarantined in here whilst you let our incompetent Empress handle things!?” The frustration began to grow inside Skarlet.

“I’m sure that Kitana will find a way-“

“She doesn’t understand any of this, not even if you tell her! Now please get out of my way.”

“I told you I’m not moving!”

Skarlet aggressively got closer to Jade, until their heads met. Jade looked into her eyes and whilst they were not glowing yet, to signify the demon coming out to wreck havoc, she was getting angrier at her by the second.

“What do you have against me?”

“As your soulmate, I want to keep you safe. Going against Braxus alone will get you killed.” The emerald lady said, frantically becoming more fearful as Skarlet was up in her face, seething.

“If you love me so much, you would let me go instead of keeping me here to suffer like this!” Skarlet’s tone grew even louder in anger. “Now MOVE! Or I will move you out of the way myself.”

“I DON’T WANT TO LOSE YOU, SKARLET!” Jade’s bottled up tensions grew to the point of her exploding in Skarlet’s face, out of fear, and even grabbing at her shoulders, in an attempt to shake an ounce of sense into her.

“AND I WANT TO KEEP YOU SAFE!” Skarlet retaliated with her own yell in Jade’s face, but it was much more than that, because, out of anger, she grabbed Jade’s head and smashed the back of her upper body and head against the wooden door. The impact ended up knocking Jade unconscious, causing her to collapse to the floor once Skarlet let go of her limp body. Following her brief outburst, the clouds of fury began to clear around Skarlet’s mind, giving her a view of the consequences of her actions. Jade was lying on the floor of her chambers, in a state of unconsciousness, a bruise forming on her head, where she hit the side of the steel bed frame on the way down. Skarlet looked down at her actions with a frightened gasp, as she clasped the sides of her head with her hands.

“Dear god!” She gasped inaudibly, getting more shaken by the second. The demon inside her has now taken it way too far, for it caused her to attack her loved one with no motivation or cause, rather being a fit of fury. Tears began to form in her eyes as Skarlet was unable to take being here anymore, in a place that she viewed as dangerous to her mentality. She snatched her bag from her bed and snapped open the door, before making a run for it. Skarlet was seen running frantically down the steps of the castle, before making a run for the door, her cries and heavy breaths combined into sounds of pure despair. She failed to pay attention to her own surroundings many times, almost crashing into a few servants and handmaidens, who were confused about why the red woman was fleeing so quickly. All that was in Skarlet’s vision was the door of the castle, one of her only methods of escape, and she proceeded to dash out of the castle, as fast as her legs could carry her. 

The Blood Mage was unable to stay another second in that area, for she feared that she has caused too much carnage with her hex, both day and night, so she wanted to leave for everybody else’s safety, as well as her own. As she fled the scene, Baraka and Erron watched on, calling out her name a few times. But Skarlet was unable to hear their voices, for she was too focused on getting away from the castle as soon as possible. She reached the main body of the streets, where there were a bunch of people travelling, stopping by the nearby shops or just a bunch of hungover people sobering up and wandering aimlessly. Luckily, it was early in the morning, so not much was happening, meaning that there was a clear path for Skarlet to run away, since there wasn’t very many people in the streets, though she did gain a few onlookers, who later shrugged and passed off her frantic movements as someone who was late for a meeting.

Eventually, her legs became too tired after running for five minutes nonstop, so she searched for the most secluded area in the streets of Outworld. After she found a place in a nearby alley, Skarlet sat down on the floor, the fear in her head morphing into sadness as she wept, freeing her tears.

“Oh god!” The blood mage sobbed through endless tears. “I...I’m so sorry, Jade!” She clearly didn’t mean to attack her loved one like this, for she was unknowingly preventing her from doing the right thing and putting an end to her curse, trying to stop herself from becoming a monster at night.

“All I wanted was to end this, not cause more damage!” Her voice became nothing more than upset croaks, reflecting on everything that happened over the past few days, from her first encounter with a werewolf, to becoming one herself, to her acts of violence during the day, the ambush on Jade, her falling out with Kitana and culminating in injuring and possibly even accidentally killing Jade. Now that she’s left the one place she ever got a chance to call a home, Skarlet was completely on her own, no friends, no allies, and most devastating of all, no Jade. Once her tears had run out, Skarlet was left there to mope in depression, thinking about how it all started when she was assaulted by Kitana.

“I should’ve kept my mouth shut.” She was now in a state where she believed that everything from the start was her fault. “I should’ve listened to Kitana’s strategy, rather than be so eager to kill those monsters.” It was then she got angry with herself, since there was nobody left to take out her frustrations on.

“This is all my fault!” She burst out, throwing her fist into what she believed to be the wall behind her. However, upon her fist connecting, she heard a shout of pain come from her right, which made her jump in surprise.

“Watch where you ssswing your fisssts.” A growling, hissing voice came from the thin air around her. After recovering from the sudden shock, Skarlet was able to recognise that voice. It was Reptile, the Saurian ninja, the last one of his kind, and a former adversary to the late Kotal Kahn and Shao Kahn, during their reigns. He revealed himself from his trademark invisibility stance, clutching his arm, where it had been thumped pretty hard, unknowingly by Skarlet.

“Reptile!? Is that really you?” Skarlet broke the temporary silence as the reptilian warrior uncloaked, presenting his lizard-like form, with every inch of his body covered in dark-green scales. His face, with his dragon eyes and mouth lined with razor sharp teeth concealing a long tongue, like a frog, was covered by a two-piece mask, which made it convenient for his signature Acid Spit ability, which saved him having to take his mask off or risk damaging it. His attire was a traditional ninja garb, made from a mixture of black and green leather, with gold plating around the loincloth, making it resemble a dragon’s tail at the back. It had been a while since the two had met, dating back to the reign of Shao Kahn, so he has considerably changed from his human disguise, a Saurian tradition, causing them to de-volve into their natural Zaterran form over time.

“Long time no see, my old comrade.” The mood change from depression to delight was quite remarkable for Skarlet, who outstretched her hand to greet Reptile, who accepted the greeting, connecting their hands in a firm grip.

“Sssuch a pleasure to have you here, Ssskarlet.” He responded in his gravelly tone. “And how have you been all thisss time?”

“I could probably ask you the same thing.”

“Well, you sssee,” Reptile began to explain, “ever sssince Kotal’s death, I assumed that Kitana, the new Kahn, would have some sssort of animosity towardsss me. Ssso now I ssspend my time wandering the streetsss of Outworld. And what about you?”

Upon being asked to explain how her life has been going, since their initial separation, Skarlet’s feelings were mixed because she knew it started off very well, being welcomed by Kitana and Jade into their ‘family’, but now that the infestation of werewolves has happened, things have clearly not been the same.

“It’s a very long story, Reptile.” She began.

(Back at the Castle. 12:00am)

Jade awoke in the medical room of the castle, with a blurry vision. The back of her head ached like absolute hell, and she felt the side of her forehead, where a sizeable lump had formed. A wet feeling came into contact with her hand, as it was gently dragged away by one of the doctors.

“The cream will do the healing job so I recommend that you refrain from touching your wound for a while.” He ordered calmly.

“Apologies.” Jade said. But suddenly, she remembered what had happened before she blacked out. What her own eyes saw: The clothing on her upper body grabbed by the maniacal ninja in red, her crimson eyes and gritted teeth showing rage, her violent actions smashing the back of her head against the firm, wooden door behind her. Every little piece of this puzzle connected, which caused Jade to jolt up quickly from her hospital bed and make her way out of the medical area, thanking the doctor for his support on the way out.

Jade wandered through the busy halls of the castle, filled with the working servants and maids, as well as the tough, mean-looking Tarkatan soldiers and guards. She made her way upstairs until she reached Skarlet’s room, before opening the door, sporting a look of concern, with a hint of anger, as she had been attacked by her lover and almost permanently damaged. But once she had a first glance in her room, she noticed that not only was Skarlet not inside, but her bag was missing as well. Once she remembered the Blood Mage telling Jade that she was leaving, followed by her own attempts to prevent her, Jade’s olive pupils dilated as her eyes widened in horror.

“She’s gone!” The emerald lady gasped, before frantically leaving the abandoned chambers. She leaned at the banister upstairs and called out “SKARLET!”, her loud tone filled to the brim with worry and despair, allowing everybody in the entire castle to hear her cry for help.

After that, Jade’s lower legs gave out as she dropped to her knees, overwhelmed with dread, and on the brink of breaking into tears, until Erron came along.

“I’m afraid she has left, Jade. I saw her running out of the front gate with her belongings. Guess she was serious after all.” He said, a sullen look shown on his face.

Whilst Erron was upset about the departure of an ally, Jade was absolutely grief-stricken and in a state of self-doubt.

“It was my fault! I should have let her go without stopping her!” She exclaimed in sadness.”

“I understand that-“

“No, you don’t, Erron. I tried to convince her to stay, but she lashed out at me and...now my last memory of her will be of her...attacking her best friend!”

“Now, my lovely, there’s no need to cry about it.” Erron tried to be reassuring, which was difficult for a lone gunslinger to be. “I’m sure that Kitana will be aware of this and send out a search party.”

Taking in Erron’s suggestion, Jade blocked away her welling tears and stood up to go to Kitana’s Chambers, hoping to get some help from her in looking for Skarlet, perhaps in the form of a search party. She knocked on the door outside of her chambers and waited patiently until it was opened. However, the sight that she saw was not so pleasant.

Kitana looked like a broken mess of a woman, with her normally neatly-kept hair, flowing past her shoulders in a somewhat tangled mess. Looking up at her face, her puffy eyelids and melancholic frown showed that it was an understatement to say that she had seen better days. The two women, who looked like complete polar opposites in mood and appearance, briefly stared at each other in an awkward silence for a few seconds before the consort spoke.

“Are you alright, my Empress?” Jade asked.

“I’m fine.” Kitana attempted to hide her depression with some flimsy words that did very little to cover up her image.

“I can clearly see that you aren’t. Should we talk about what happened last night?”

“I really don’t want to at the moment. Do you mind coming back later so I can...sort myself out?”

“Of course, Kitana.” Jade closed the door and went off to her own chambers, to pass the time.

(1 hour later)

Jade calmly sat in a chair on the balcony, basking in the warmth of the Outworld sun, whilst enjoying a pleasant book, one in particular about a taboo love between two young men, trying to hide it from one of the boys’ homophobic parents. The same-sex relationship got Jade a bit sad on the inside, because that reminded her of her own now-former relationship with Skarlet. She continued reading, hoping that something bad doesn’t happen to trigger any more negative memories. Her reading was interrupted by a knock at her door, and she answered it to find Kitana, who looked an improvement over her earlier state, but her face still carried a depressed frown.

“If memory serves me correctly, you wanted to talk to me about what happened last night, right?” The Empress asked.

“Indeed.”

Kitana walked in as Jade heated some water and ground some sweet herbs in a pot, preparing tea for both of them. As she waited for the water to boil, she and Kitana both sat down to discuss.

“So, you see, I saw Skarlet cause a bar fight yesterday afternoon, by attacking an innocent woman, which meant that I had to have an intervention with her.” Kitana began her side of the story.

“I heard about the bar fight. Baraka told me all about it, saying that ten people were injured.” Jade recalled.

“Anyways, Skarlet told me that her outbursts were linked to when I initially lost my temper and slapped her, during a disagreement. I consoled her, telling her that she doesn’t need to worry about it anymore, one minute before she lashed out again at Devar attempting to attack her. And afterwards, it seemed like she had a complete mental breakdown in her chambers. It was awful to hear.”

As Jade heard on, she noticed that Kitana’s words showed that she had some kind of concern towards Skarlet and her current condition, which was the opposite of what Skarlet said about her being ‘heartless’. She noticed that the water had reached it’s boiling point, so she poured it into two cups, filled with the ground herbs, and mixed each one until they dissolved and infused into the boiling water, creating a delectable hot beverage. She passed one of the cups to Kitana, who took a small sip and sighed, refreshed.

“I really did feel sorry for that girl...” after pausing to take another sip of tea, her tone turned grim, “until that moment last night.”

“What happened?” This was the part that Jade was most interested to hear this whole time, why Skarlet showed so much anger to the mere mention of Kitana’s name.

“It was during Braxus’ attack, where I saw many things, including a werewolf attacking you and coming close to killing you before it somehow turned against the Lycan King and sent him fleeing.” Kitana continued her story. “I summoned it to my Chambers to show my gratitude before it revealed itself to actually be Skarlet, this whole time.”

“I know. That is a terrifying thing to bask in, that our close friend is now a werewolf herself.”

“Former close friend, Jade. She explained the true motives behind her outbursts, blaming it on some demon inside of her, and then she tried to leave and travel a long distance to kill Braxus. And when I refused, she called me out for being ‘incompetent’ and not helping her with her curse.” It was as this point where Kitana’s tone grew angrier as she described every detail of the altercation. “I mean, what was I supposed to do!? Wish for the curse to go away? Launch a full-scale attack without a plan? And then, she lost her temper to a point where she struck me across the face, after telling me that it was ‘REALLY how she felt about me’.” She was on the verge of losing her cool, but calmed herself with a long sip of her refreshing herbal beverage. “And then after that, she told me that our relationship was over. Fine by me.” She huffed in frustration.

Jade was filled with every ounce of knowledge with each word from Kitana, fully managing to gain both sides of the story and form them together. To her, it is now clear that Skarlet and Kitana have had a falling out, and both weren’t taking the aftermath of these events very well.

“Well did you hear that Skarlet just left this morning?”

Kitana’s dull expression failed to change as she muttered “Good riddance...”

Jade was appalled by such words as she stood up.

“Kitana! I know that there is animosity between you and Skarlet, but surely you should show more care towards one of your top ministers.”

“She’s no longer that, so she’s no longer my concern.” Kitana retorted.

“No longer your concern? You’re the Empress of Outworld! The lives of every inhabitant should be one of, if not THE, main concern on your mind!” And this brought Jade to another thing on her mind, that she needed to bring up. “So, with that in mind...we need to call a search party for her, because she’s going to get herself killed, fighting Braxus.”

“I don’t bother with traitors, Jade.” Kitana said.

Jade was sick and tired of this grudge between the two, so she walked over to Kitana and got right in her face.

“You cannot be this serious, Kitana!”

“She betrayed me, Jade! I brought her in here, gave her a home when nobody else would, I even loved her, and this is what I got from her!” She pointed to a bruise on her right cheek, when she was struck by Skarlet’s fist. “That was the last time she’s getting any sort of support from me.”

“We need to find her! Friend or foe, we cannot just let one of our own die!” Jade argued back.

“Besides, even if there was no grudge between me and her, our forced are unprepared in case we come into battle with the Lycans. It’s going to take at least seven days before we even stand a chance against them. And we cannot afford to risk less protection here just to save YOUR friend.” Kitana said, coming up with a valid reason to back her own stance on not helping her ex-councillor.

“We could at least try, instead of crying over her like an ex-boyfriend, Kitana!”

“I’m sorry, Jade, but I cannot let this happen!” Kitana declared angrily. “The person that we’re saving, the current situation we’re in and the current threat level simply means that it’s not worth it. Skarlet’s a lost cause, and after what happened recently, she deserved it.” She picked up her cup of tea and hurriedly gulped down the now-lukewarm contents, before placing the empty cup in the sink as Jade looked on, ashamed of her Empress.

“Looks like Skarlet was not the only person her curse changed.” Jade said, grimly. “You really do lack sympathy, Kitana.”

Kitana simply ignored Jade and left, closing the door behind her. The emerald ninja looked on hopelessly before she sighed and slumped in her chair, her tea growing colder by the second, a reminder of what the Empress’ soul has become.

(Reptile’s Alleyway, 12:30)

“...and whenever Baraka managed to take me down during our sessionsss, he used to gloat about taking down a Sssaurian. Instead of going for the win and dealing more damage, the maniac just tauntssss me!”

“I always knew that Baraka was such an egotistical fool. More abs than brain cells, for sure, is what Erron used to tell me!” Skarlet joked before taking a bite out of her food, a thick slice of boar meat, cooked to a rare type and oozing with warm blood. She and Reptile had been relaxing in the depths of the alleyway, catching up on each other’s lives, where the lizard-man had told her that he works at one of the Tarkatan Meat Workshops.

“There was also another time when one of the Tarkatans got what ssseemed to be a brilliant kill, because when he brought the meat into the room, he began to caressss it, and call it it’s ‘beautiful.’. And then I remember Baraka yelling at him to ‘Skip the foreplay and beat that meat!’” The innuendo made Skarlet laugh so hard, with a chunk of meat in her mouth, that she came close to choking, but managed to calm herself and resume eating normally.

“Well, at least Tarkatans are not as dumb as Lycans.” She said. “Speaking of which, didn’t you have something to comment on about them?” This entire scene had just happened after Skarlet gave Reptile a full rundown of events that had just happened, including her becoming a werewolf and being forced to attack people that she loved against her own will, under control of the demon inside of her.

“Indeed I did, Ssskarlet.” Reptile quickly devoured the remainder of his own raw meat before placing his hand on top of Skarlet’s. “You’re not the only one out of us to have had experience with these typesss of creatures.”

“Are you saying that YOU’VE encountered Lycans before.”

Reptile nodded. “Correct. In fact, it goes way back, way before the rivalry with Tarkatansss.” He continued to tell his story. “Many centuries ago, Zaterra was under attack from a Lycanthrope invasion, but from the almighty King T’sunto, who was the Lycan King before Braxus was. The entire battle was nothing short of ferocious, with hundreds upon hundreds of casualties. I was the leader of the Saurian Forces that day and I was forced to witness the heads of my allies roll, as each werewolf tore them apart. That was until I came face to face with the King himself, and I managed to put up a good showing, but he was too much. He used some type of sorcery to absorb my acidic saliva and began using it against me, also burning my left arm off.” And with that, he pulled up part of his tunic to show a horrific burn mark circling around the joint of his shoulder.

“Damn. I guess they weren’t stupid back then.” Skarlet commented, seeing how dangerous the Lycans were, centuries before the Outworld infestation.

“They were way more cunning, focused less on presenting their ego and more on fighting, unlike their current king.” Reptile said.

“I’m now starting to think that Braxus cares more about building a family, instead of fighting.” Skarlet began to theorise. “Either way, it is still a burden because he’s always out for blood.”

“It is definitely not an easy task going up against them, no matter how stupid they may seem.” Reptile said, pointing at his scar and reminding Skarlet of the damage potential that the Lycans have. 

Afterwards, he stared down at Skarlet’s bag and got curious.

“You earlier told me that you left your castle to go off and fight Braxus, correct?”

“Yes.”

“What weapons do you plan on carrying, other than your Blood Magic? Because it’s not as effective on werewolves as I remember.”

Skarlet heeded his words and opened her bag, before pulling out her crossbow and presenting it to him, as well as the silver-tipped arrows. The reptillian warrior looked over and inspected her makeshift weapon.

“Not bad for a makeshift weapon,” he reviewed her choice of weaponry, “However, it’s going to be harder to make these silver arrows effective, compared to an actual crossbow.” Reptile then directed his gaze to the belt on Skarlet that carried her dagger. “And what isss your dagger made out of?”

“It was forged with iron and copper.”

“Bah! Pathetic choice! You’re fighting lycanthropes not a Ssspecial Forces K-9 Unit!” Reptile criticised her sword. “You need something better for close ranged combat.” 

“But I did manage to kill a few last night with my ‘pathetic choice’.” Skarlet responded.

“He likely brought his ssscouts with him, who are much weaker than those who guard him at his war camp. You need better weaponry in order to get past those types.” And with that, he crawled over to his own makeshift storage and rummaged through his own collection of old relics and weapons, before he revealed a rectangular box, that he presented to Skarlet.

“Behold...” he declared before opening the box to reveal a sword. The weapon was of similar length to Skarlet’s own dagger, with the handle displaying a model of a wolf’s skull. Looking at the blade, it was shiny, but half of it was a silver colour, whilst the other half shone green, like the brightest of emeralds. Upon her eyes catching the green colour, something triggered inside of Skarlet’s mind, that being the exact same scene of her outburst towards Jade, seeing the fear and terror in her olive green eyes as she had her own hand squeezing around her neck before brutally slamming it into the solid wooden door behind her.

“What do you think, Ssskarlet?” Reptile asked, snapping her out of her PTSD-infused state.

“I-I think it looks intriguing, Reptile.” She pointed to the half of the dagger covered in green. “What’s with the green?”

“This particular dagger was forged with not only sssilver, the bane of all werewolves, but also with a mixture of Zaterran saliva, our trademark acidic saliva, meaning that this blade is more than lethal.” Reptile explained.

“But why? I thought silver was the only thing stopping these monsters.”

“That’s the only half you ssseem to know,” Reptile began, before he proceeded to resume his story from the Lycan invasion of Zaterra.

“I wasss down, missing an arm as T’sunto was planning to make the kill on me. However, asss I braced for my inevitable death, he wasss stopped, by a weapon that had impaled him, not only though hisss body, but cutting through hisss thick armour as well. I looked up to sssee Queen Sytholin, who had decided to take matters into her own handsss. And thisss, Skarlet, was one of my finessst memories of my Queen, for she single-handedly managed to fight off King T’sunto and even finish him off by impaling hisss heart with this very blade I present to you.” He proceeded to give Skarlet the dagger, which now has some incredible historic value behind it. “If you want even a sssliver of a chance against the Lycan King, you would want to aim for his heart with thisss dagger, and leave it stuck in there. Becaussse, it will infuse hisss heart with the Zaterran acid and end up killing him. Hisss skin is much tougher than the other wolvesss of his rank, ssso this blade is your sssaviour, just as it wasss to Zaterra.”

As Reptile told his story about the one blade Skarlet held in her hand, the red vixen looked on in astonishment. She used to hear many stories from Reptile about Queen Sytholin, the Warrior Queen of Zaterra, during her youth. It was what made her consider Reptile an important part of her life.

“Before you ssset off,” he continued, “Do you wish to know more about their hissstory?”

“Sure.”

“You sssee, Lycans were not always as evil as perceived by others.” Reptile said. “After the death of T’Sunto, they went into hiding for many years, but soon came under the leadership of Queen Fantasia, who decided that the werewolves should not use their strengths for evil, but for good. They became architects, using their strength and perseverance to conjure up the grandest of Outworld’s landmarks. Their knack for building the strongest of weapons garnered the welcoming support of not only Outworld, but to Edenia, before Shao Kahn took over, moving them to Outworld. Sssuddenly, Fantasia’s new husband, Braxus, got too tired of how weak he saw werewolves as being, and he killed her, thusss letting his power and beliefs reign free, desecrating the name of an entire race and pulling them into the point of no return!” His dialogue became more morbid towards the end, as Skarlet listened on, with a look of shock on her face. It was bad enough that Braxus planned on infecting the entirety of Outworld and inducting them into his cult of monsters, but the fact that he managed to commit genocide upon the mere name and nature of the Lycan race, thus making people resent them, is even more unforgiving.

“Braxus’ head will be mine.” She stood up and shook the hand of the lizard-being in front of her. “Thank you so much, Reptile.” And she pulled her friend in closer for a hug, which he returned, an unexpectedly heartwarming act from such a savage beast of a warrior like him.

“Wait. You said something earlier about a ‘War Camp’ that Braxus had, didn’t you?”

“Indeed.”

“Could you possibly steer me in the right direction?” She asked him.

Reptile mused for a second before coming up with his own response.

“I’m not sssure if he will be there, or at hisss castle, which is ssso far away that it needs to be reached via Portal Ssstone.” He explained. “However, on the very instance that he isss, I will be happy to guide you in the right direction.”

Reptile reached into his pile of belongings once again and pulled out a compass, which he handed to Skarlet. He then pointed to the East part.

“If you continue to travel eassst for the next eight hoursss, you could be able to reach the War Camp by the rissse of the full moon.”

“I will keep that in mind, comrade.” Skarlet said, filled with his knowledge. “Once again, thank you so much for your hospitality.”

“It was the least I could do, Ssskarlet.” Reptile returned. “And good luck on your quessst.”

And with that, new weapon equipped and mind infused with brand new knowledge on the Lycans, Skarlet set out to end her curse. She made her way out of the dark alleyway, where she was met with brightness for the first time in many hours. Running an entire hand through her short, dark hair and wearing a face of determination, the Bloodbender was ready to lay siege upon the Lycans’ War Camp and take the head off the King, as a lone vigilante. Gone were any possible obstacles looking to prevent her. She was Skarlet, the nomadic Blood Mage, with the sacred power of Blood Magik and the blood of a werewolf flowing through her bloodstream. And she was ready to cause a bloodshed tonight...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With her friendships shattered and a kurse looming over her, will Skarlet free herself by killing Braxus? And what will go down at the Lycan War Kamp? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> Sorry about the overuse of the word ‘soulmate’, but ‘close friend that turned out to be closer and thus the key of freeing you from your curse’ didn’t roll of the tongue as well.
> 
> What did you think of Reptile’s cameo? Seems like he’ll end up being a valuable asset in Skarlet’s journey. Stay tuned to see what happens next when Skarlet reaches the War Kamp and battles the Big Bad Wolf!


	8. Showdown (Fourth Night)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summary: With Jade coming back to help her, Skarlet prepares to take down the Lycans, but it results in another horrifying accident, this time, involving her companion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _‘I wanna hide the truth,  
>  I wanna shelter you.  
> But with the beast inside,  
> There’s nowhere we can hide.  
> No matter what we breed,  
> We still are made of greed.  
> This is my kingdom come.  
> This is my kingdom come.’_
> 
> _‘When you feel my heat,  
>  Look into my eyes.  
> It’s where my Demons hide!  
> It’s where my Demons hide!  
> Don’t get too close.  
> It’s dark inside!  
> It’s where my Demons hide!  
> It’s where my Demons hide!’_
> 
> _(Imagine Dragons - Demons) ___

(Jade’s Chambers, Outworld Castle, 6:00pm)

Jade had spent almost the entire day laying on her bed and sulking at the ceiling above her. It didn’t help with the fact that this action reminded her of when she used to be with Skarlet, both women spending some nights stargazing, and looking up at the illuminated dark skies of the Outworld night. After spending a few more minutes, wallowing in her own depression, Jade sat up on her bed and looked down at her glaive, before walking over to pick it up and inspect it. She had recently made some modifications earlier in the day to one of her two signature weapons, having it being reforged with silver to give it more power against Lycanthropes. The olivine beauty traced her finger over the blunt end of her blade before she looked outside and saw a wild Outword horse, likely escaped from one of it’s stables. It released a whinny to try and communicate with her, which seems impossible, but the tone in which it brayed was one of worry, which Jade could tell.

“Is there something wrong?” She asked the animal in front of her. The horse marked it’s left front hoof into a small path in front of it, as an indication that it wants Jade to travel somewhere. The emerald assassin walked out of her room, via her balcony, and followed the direction that the horse guided her. Once she had reached the destination, she was shown a large row of footprints, which led to a path going east. Jade bent down and got a better look at the footprint, before an epiphany went off in her mind. Her memories traced back to when she was looking for Skarlet, in her bedroom, and she saw footprints on the floor, made from her own blood pouring out of the side of her head and on the floor. What she noticed is that the footprint of blood exactly matched the ones made in the sand, which meant one thing: she could find Skarlet.

Jade leapt up and made a dash for her room, where she quickly grabbed her staff & glaives before hopping onto the back of the horse.

“Don’t worry, Skarlet.” She said under her breath. “I’m coming to help you.” And with that, she let out a war cry and the horse began to trot, before picking up acceleration and galloping in the path of Skarlet’s footprints. Jade looked back at the castle, getting smaller and smaller from her viewpoint, before she rode off into the sunset, in search for the Blood Mage.

_(2 Miles from the Lycan War Camp: 11:00pm) ___

__There it is. After what seemed like endless hours of walking and trudging through deserted land, gothic forests and high cliffs, there Skarlet was, on the verge of the War Camp, where Braxus and the other werewolves rested, on their way back to his castle. Skarlet’s legs were close to collapsing at any second, despite the many rest breaks that she took throughout the entire journey._ _

__“Finally...” she gasped before collapsing into a seated heap on the rocky floors. It was worth the agonisingly long journey from the streets of Outworld to make it to the War Camp. The Blood Mage took this time sitting down to take a flask of water from her bag and desperately gulp it’s contents down, as if she hadn’t drunk in days. Afterwards, she began to make herself a little plan of action, including observing the scenery. The Camp itself was split into five sections, set in a grassy mountain setting. The one that Skarlet looked at, whilst keeping out of sight, had many Lycan guards out and about, making sure that the lower-ranking scouts were moving large, wooden barrels, most likely containing something lethal. They were being led to a large tent, where they would most likely be stored, for later shipment._ _

__Skarlet’s oncoming train of ideas was halted by what she noticed in the sky above her: The full moon. After dumping all of her belongings into her bag and tossing it over her shoulder, the red kunoichi took off, not wanting to risk transforming in view of the Lycans and prematurely gaining their attention, especially since she’s most likely a wanted woman. She had to get out of range quickly, so she ran to a deserted cliffside, around 5 miles away from the camp, where she looked over the scenery in front of her, getting a good view of the full moon glaring right back at her. It looked so big and felt so close in front of Skarlet that it’s as if she could reach out and touch it. Glaring back at the moon were a pair of Skarlet’s own glowing white eyes, signifying the beginning of her monstrous shift._ _

__She groaned in dread “Here goes nothing...” before she watched the metamorphosis play out in front of her own eyes once again, starting with her own hands, watching the bright pink skin being enveloped with crimson red fur, growing out in small individual hairs before the mass amount gave off a furry appearance on her left forearm. Looking down at her hand, she saw her palm grow fleshy pads, like those on a wolf’s paw, and claws began to form from her fingernails, giving her an extra weapon to battle the wolves with. The exact same thing was happening on her other forearm, as the growth of fur began affecting her abdomen. Knowing what was going to become of her clothing, Skarlet dug her claws into the fabric of her shirt and ripped apart the lower half, showing her skin turning red with the growing hair._ _

__“Alright,” she said to herself. “Lets hope that damned demon doesn’t rise from this.” Suddenly she felt small jolts of pain coming from her back and shoulders as she felt the expanding muscles stretch the skin and tear more and more of her shirt. Whilst this was happening, Skarlet felt warmth around the skin of her legs, so she made a slash at the sides of her tights, which exposed more and more fur growing out the skin of her legs, as the muscles down below also began bulging, giving the Blood Mage a more bulkier structure than she experienced as a human. The strange feelings began occurring at the sides of Skarlet’s head, where fur began to grow from her ears, as they rose up her head before resting on the top, peeking out among the short black hairstyle on her head. She raised her paw up to the top of her head and gently began stroking her new wolf ears, mirroring what had been done before to try and tame the beast coming out. The kunoichi’s back also began to feel strange, not only by more growing ruby fur, but also because of a tail growing out from the bottom of her spine, before tearing through the fabric of her tights and swaying gently behind her, attached to her rear. Soon afterwards, her boots were once again wrecked by the emergence of her anthropomorphic feet, sporting claws and fur and shaped like a wolf’s hind paw._ _

__“Oh god...not again.” The pain on her body was being turned up and directed towards her head. Her face was physically starting to change as she growled through clenched teeth, becoming sharp fangs, and let out a cry of pain as her nose reshaped from humanoid to animalistic, blackening and taking on the form of a wolf’s nose. As the Blood Mage feared the worst about to happen, she desperately tried to put up a fight against the rising demon inside of her mind, in a battle to see who gains control._ _

__“You cannot win this time, Skarlet!” Came the demonic voice in her head, fighting for control._ _

__“Damn you!” She growled back, definitely._ _

__Suddenly, the demon stopped fighting and began to shrink into nothingness. Skarlet’s moonlight eyes also opened wide, her transformation nearly coming to an end, as she noticed something on her left hand. Clasping her paw-hand hybrid were two other humanlike hands, with a mocha-brown shade. The crimson she-wolf looked forward and saw the source of the hands, before immediately smiling in over-joyousness._ _

__“Jade! Y-you’re here-“_ _

__Her emotional exclamation was cut off by Jade grabbing her soft cheeks, whilst feeling the red hairs growing out of the pale skin, before connecting her lips with the wolf’s into a deep, passionate kiss. With her positive emotions uncontrollably flowing around her brain, like the Lycan DNA in her bloodstream, Skarlet wrapped her fur-covered arms around Jade’s back and returned the kiss with just as much passion and joy, glad to be reunited with her soulmate. The growing fur on every pore of her face continued changing her into a mutation of Beauty and Beast, before the metamorphosis ended. Skarlet’s lips briefly left Jade’s before she closed her eyes and threw her head upwards to the full moon, letting loose a soft, elegant howl to the dark skies above her. The woman in front of her even copied her action, leaning her head backwards so she faced the sky, before joining Skarlet in her howl. After the wolf call died down, her moon-like pupils stared into the emerald pupils of Jade._ _

__“I see that I managed to arrive in the nick of time.” The emerald beauty said to the crimson wolf in front of her._ _

__“You came back for me!” Skarlet’s joyous emotions were showing no signs of stopping as she embraced her lover, on the verge of crying tears of joy. “I thought you would resent me after-“_ _

__“Shh...There’s nothing more to worry about, my love.” Jade said, wrapping an arm over Skarlet’s left shoulder and stroking the hair on her head. “I should have let you go without resistance. I just could not imagine your possibly final memory of us together being violent, so I’ve decided to help you take out the Lycans.”_ _

__“You really are as loyal as they say you are, Jade.”_ _

__Skarlet let go of Jade and they both knelt on the small patch of grass near the edge of the cliff._ _

__“Their War Camp is just a couple of miles from where we are.” The Blood Mage began to explain to her companion. “I saw that they’re transporting cargo into a nearby large tent.”_ _

__“What could possibly be inside?”_ _

__“I have no clue, but we can sneak in through there and then take out each of them silently, one by one.” Skarlet’s plan detailed._ _

__“But what if we get caught?” Jade inquired._ _

__“Well, why the hell did I bring these along with me?” Skarlet pulled out her Crossbow and dagger, giving Jade the opportunity to look at the ways they can kill the lycans._ _

__Skarlet tossed the Crossbow to Jade. “Here. You’ll need this.”_ _

__The green ninja looked at the red ninja, with a smile beginning to creep up on the side of her face, as she loaded a silver arrow into the Crossbow._ _

__“Let’s go hunting...”_ _

___(Back at the Castle) ____ _

____There was a knock at the door to Jade’s Chamber and outside stood Kitana, with an apologetic look on her face._ _ _ _

____She sighed. “Jade. I do not know if you can hear me, but if you can, I would like to...apologise for my appalling behaviour shown earlier today. You see...I was still in a bitter mood over my falling-out with Skarlet last night, that I had seemingly forgotten how much she means to you, as a friend. I should have understood better, even if I still despise that woman over her actions.” The Empress paused her apology and pressed her ear close to her door. There was no sound, and the door was locked too._ _ _ _

____“...Jade?”_ _ _ _

____Kitana decided to walk outside and go around the back to her balcony, but alas, after looking through, she was not there. But what was there was a trail of footprints that led up to a set of hoofprints, which travelled into the east. With these clues, Kitana managed to put two and two together and put her head in her hands in despair._ _ _ _

____Frantically, she went back inside the castle to search for Baraka, who was much easier to find, for he had not left the building._ _ _ _

____“Baraka! I cannot find Jade anywhere! I believe that she’s left to go and search for Skarlet!” The Empress panicked towards the General._ _ _ _

____“I knew something like this would happen.” Came the gruff response._ _ _ _

____“We need to create a search party immediately!” She ordered. “Jade’s putting her own life at risk and I cannot let that happen.”_ _ _ _

____“Noted. I’ll gather some of the men up and then we’ll go when you’re ready.” Baraka said with a salute before going downstairs, to a lower room in the castle, which led to a door. The Tarkatan General opened it to see other Tarkatan Soldiers participating in an arm wrestling competition, with spectators cheering._ _ _ _

____“Sorry to intrude on your entertainment,” he spoke in his native tongue, “but Kitana Kahn has ordered a search party for Jade.”_ _ _ _

____As the Tarkatans got themselves ready to venture, Kitana went up to her throne room and rummaged through her collection of war fans to find one with silver material, perfect for killing Lycanthropes._ _ _ _

____“I do hope you’re safe, Jade.” She said to herself. “And Skarlet too.”_ _ _ _

_____(Lycan War Camp, Ten Minutes Later...) ____ _ _ _

______Behind two large rocks, further concealed by a bush, Skarlet and Jade hid themselves, whilst the red ninja took out a small telescope, poking it out from between the two rocks and looking through, examining the scene. What she saw were two werewolf guards on lookout, making sure that the cargo barrels beside them were being picked up by others._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I think that’s the last of them, Lars.” The smaller, more scrawny wolf said to the taller, leaner one beside him._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I hope so.” Lars responded. He spoke in a thick Russian accent, but he wasn’t the only Russian werewolf in the setting right now, for she was kept hidden. Lars was clad in a full suit of armour, and a large, steel helmet, which concealed a good portion of his face and his entire body. Skarlet looked on and smiled, her plan beginning to come together in her mind._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Psst, Skarlet!” Jade whispered, trying to gain her lover’s attention. “Come here! I found something that might be useful.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Briefly pausing her surveillance, the crimson wolf snuck over to Jade’s side, where they saw, on the other side of the makeshift wall, a large barrel, which was empty and similar to the ones that were being carried away._ _ _ _ _ _

______“So, what’s your plan, Jade?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Wait and see.” And with that, she used her silent, nimble movements to leap over their cover and creep over to the empty barrel, before climbing inside, making minimal noise in the process. Skarlet looked on, but soon had to take cover again, when she heard Lars speaking._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hey, Nero.” He said as the smaller wolf began to leave. “Look out for me whilst I go for a piss-break.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Sure thing.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Lars went behind the wall to relieve his bladder, but before he got the chance to unzip, Skarlet took aim with a concealed silver arrow before throwing it like a dart, hitting Lars in the eye-hole, going into his brain and killing him instantly. His body immediately became lifeless and came on the verge of collapsing and causing some questionably loud noises before Jade quickly rose up and stopped it, before gently placing it down. Skarlet followed suit, making sure Nero did not see her, before quickly stripping Lars’ corpse off his attire and donning it herself, planning on sneaking in as the guard. What made things even luckier for the crimson assassin was the fact that she was the same height as the deceased Lycan, but they had a different fur colour, with Skarlet’s being red and Lars’ being dark brown. Thankfully, the armour worn around the arm and leg area was very bulky and sturdy, which added to the convincing appearance because though her muscles around her body grew during her transformation, they were still not much compared to those of the males._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What’s the next move?” Jade asked, sitting in the empty barrel besides Skarlet._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m going to sneak you into the place where they’re storing this cargo. There, we will see what’s in that room, which will lead to our next plan.” The she-wolf explained her next stage of her infiltration, before stepping out into view of Nero, leaning against the wall, ready to drift off to sleep before she, posing as Lars, snapped her fingers, waking the wolf up._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You said that was the last of these barrels, Nero!” She said, in a lowered pitch of her own accent, to try and mimic Lars’ own._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What do you mean?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“There’s literally one right next to me.” She said, dragging the heavy load into view and presenting it to Nero, who facepalmed._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’ll help you move it-“_ _ _ _ _ _

______“No, no. I’ll do it myself.” Skarlet sighed in frustration, before taking a small cart, placing the barrel on top of it and beginning to wheel it away, whilst muttering “Idiot” underneath her breath._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hey! There’s no need to be mean, Lars.” Nero said, offended._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Just like there’s no need for you to be incompetent.” She fired back. “Now stay on guard whilst I make this final delivery.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______As Nero groaned and went back to his position, Skarlet left the tent and entered the camp itself. There were torches that lit up every part of the dark area around her, with each pathway leading to new tents, that acted like the main pillars of a street. Whilst moving towards the storage area, she looked to see a makeshift bar, seeing Lycans clinking glasses of alcohol and gulping them down. All of them were the same as each other, big beastly creatures with long, ugly snouts and cruel, bared fangs. She also saw a group of tough guards using whips against low-ranking slaves, forced to do tough jobs._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Please...I haven’t rested in days-“_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Shut up and move it!” One of the wolf guards shouted, cracking his whip across the back of a helpless slave, who was dressed in ripped clothing. And through the slightly obscured vision of Lars’ helmet, Skarlet could see that it was someone who was changed into a werewolf, via a wound inflicted onto them, where the venom had seeped into their blood and transformed them into this animal she’s seeing. Around her, she saw many other innocent ex-humans, both male and female, being led to another large tent, held together by a massive, chain-linked collar._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Poor things.” Skarlet muttered to herself sorrowfully, but managed to keep her mind focused on the task at hand, which is to get to the storage area, with Jade hiding in the barrel she’s moving. Eventually, she reached the large tent and went in. However, the place had 2 other wolves guarding it, so she had to have them evicted, so she can get the next part of her plan going._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hey, boys!” She called out to the two guards. “Just got word from the bartender that they’re doing half-price on all beverages. Come quickly!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______The thought of getting their minds drowned with alcohol made the wolves in front of her excited, as they made a run for the exit._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Aren’t you going to come and join us?” One stopped to ask her._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’ll stay back here and guard, whilst you two enjoy.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Fine! More for us!” And with that, they ran out of the tent, eager for her false promise. Skarlet walked over to the barrel that she was carrying and opened it up, freeing Jade from her wooden confines._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That sure wasn’t the most comfortable experience I’ve had.” She grunted, trying to stretch her limbs out, to relieve them of any cramps that she may have suffered, being trapped inside the barrel._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Still better than your room in Shao Kahn’s palace, right?” Skarlet cracked a joke in response. “Now, let’s see what junk could be lurking around in here...”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Both women had a look around the tent, through multiple crates of cargo, containing large bulks of glass vials, sword holders and blade sharpeners. However, there was one thing that looked out of place, and that was a large black crate in the corner of the area, with the words ‘B.D. Contraband’ written in white. With curiosity, Jade opened up the crate, and it’s contents caused her and Skarlet to gasp in astonishment. Inside the crate was a selection of guns and arms, such as assault rifles semi-autos and SMGs, that looked like it was traded to them by the Black Dragon._ _ _ _ _ _

______“T-they’ve done business with the Black Dragon!?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m honestly not surprised.” Skarlet sighed. “We all know that Kano’s always so desperate for his next coin.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Still, these weapons...” Jade looked down at them with an idea that just popped up into her head. “I think we can make them work.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“What do you propose, my dear?” The red wolf asked her comrade._ _ _ _ _ _

______Jade said nothing, but smiled back, whilst her eyes narrowed and she raised the assault rifle she was holding, suggesting that she had something wicked planned._ _ _ _ _ _

______(Five Minutes Later)_ _ _ _ _ _

______“What the fuck do you mean ‘no discounts’!?” An angry shout was heard from the bar as one of the guards from earlier was arguing with the wolf bartender. “Lars pretty much runs the place so it should be official.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Well, he didn’t tell me, and I’M the bartender around here, so I make the decisions!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Look, Dane. I don’t mind paying full price for our drinks, so just let it go.” The other guard said, trying to calm the bigger guard down._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I left my shift early for this, Rowen! And you know the boss don’t like it when we’re slacking! I’m going to get my pay decked because of this asshole!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______It was then, Skarlet strolled into the bar, still cosplaying as Lars, before._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Something wrong, guys?” She asked, in a deep, masculine Soviet accent._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Lars! Come and knock some sense into this moron serving us.” Dane turned around, immediately turning his tone of anger into mild annoyance._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What do you mean?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“He’s talking about something to do with ‘half-price’ drinks.” The bartender said._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Dane, stop trying to pester the poor bastard just to get drunk.” Skarlet said to the angry guard, apparently contradicting her earlier words, just to get the two fools to leave the storage area so she could talk to Jade._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You liar! You told us earlier that there were half price on drinks tonight!” Dane yelled._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Leave it, buddy...” Rowen said, getting nervous that a fight was going to break out._ _ _ _ _ _

______“SHUT THE HELL UP, ROWEN!” Dane was starting to lose his patience as he got up in Rowen’s face, snarling like an animal, with his fangs bared in fury._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Back off!” Rowen growled back, as he shoved the bigger lycan. “Don’t go taking it out on me just because you can’t get as piss-drunk as you usually do! This is why Rebecca left you!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“People like you need to know your place.” A furious growl emerged from Dane before he tried to punch Rowen, leaning his fist back before it was halted by Skarlet, holding on to it._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Stop this! Just pay for your damn drinks and get out!” She protested, trying to defend the other wolf guard from the angry wolf guard. However, this did nothing to calm him, as he got up in her face, still concealed by the helmet._ _ _ _ _ _

______“So it’s YOU who wants to fight then?” And he grabbed her by the throat before holding her up in the air with a single paw. Skarlet could see him attempting to grab at the armour hiding her, but she was more smarter than to allow this. She focused some blood magik to summon a small tentacle that grabbed onto her foot, before jolting it up, thrusting her foot rapidly into Dane’s crotch. A large howl of agony exited the maw of the furious guard as he let go of Skarlet’s neck and cupped his paws over his clothed testicles._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Bring it on, big dog.” The crimson she-wolf stood up and put her fists up, her low growls beginning to echo through the hollowed out steel helmet. Her eyes began to glow amber from out of the helmet’s small rectangular hole, making for a sinister appearance. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a tall stool, that someone had left out, so she picked it up and swung it at Dane, bashing him across the body with it, eliciting a cheer from the other attendees, chanting ‘FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!’_ _ _ _ _ _

______Meanwhile, in another area of the camp, situated further away than the other tents, there sat the mighty figure of Braxus, on his smaller-than-usual throne, where Eli, his right-hand man, walked in, giddy with excitement._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Your Majesty!” He said, barely containing his excitement. “You are going to love this!” The Lycan guard took out a small television set, connected with countless wires, and switched it on to reveal on the screen, a network of security cameras, broadcasting from many parts of the camp, including the storage area, where Jade was awaiting Skarlet. He grabbed a remote and made one of the cameras fill the entire screen. Luckily, rather than the storage area, the camera shown was that of the bar, where Skarlet, impersonating Lars, was beating down Dane with a bar stool, among cheering spectators._ _ _ _ _ _

______This caused Braxus to laugh heartily in delight. “Lars is surely going to win this one!” He put his human/wolf-hybrid feet up, took a large bite from a boned steak in his hand and enjoyed the brawl. Unlike most places that did not condone mass violence, like in Outworld under Kitana’s regime, the Lycan War Camp was a place where bar fights were common, and even broadcasted to Braxus’ lair, where he watched every violent battle, entertained by the show each fighter was putting on for him._ _ _ _ _ _

______Back at the bar, Skarlet continued to relentlessly bash Dane with the bar stool, eventually reducing it to splinters and potentially cracking a good majority of his bones in the process._ _ _ _ _ _

______“S-stop! Stop, he’s already dead!” The bartender exclaimed._ _ _ _ _ _

______However, the anger she showed, even without her demon in control, meant that she wasn’t able to stop, until she was forcefully hauled off by two men. But as soon as it happened, something was triggered inside of Skarlet’s memory. In her mind, it played out the exact same scenes that traumatised her before, those being the time where she beat down Baraka to a bloody pulp, during a sparring session, and the time where she assaulted a woman at an Outworld bar for slapping her, all done against her own will due to the demon taking over her conscience. Her movements ceased. She stood there shaken, looking down upon the broken body of the werewolf guard she had taken out._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Remember that, Skarlet?” She heard what she dreaded the most, the demon in her mind. “You clearly enjoyed that, didn’t you?” It all made sense why Skarlet had the flashback in her head._ _ _ _ _ _

______“No...not again!” This time, her false accent had worn off and sounded much more feminine than everybody around her originally heard it. This caused Rowen to raise an eyebrow and walk over to Skarlet, who unknowingly revealed herself in front of a pack of lycans. The guard grabbed at the helmet that concealed her head before removing it. A loud, collective gasp was heard around the room, as all of the attention was directed to Skarlet, now exposed. The krimson wolf looked round at her surroundings, eyes widened in fright._ _ _ _ _ _

______“So...two out of three?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“IT’S THE TRAITOR!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Seeing everything on his screen, in his lair, Braxus leaned forward, anger in his eyes._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Skarlet...”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“ELI! Get the portal stones ready! I need you to advance to the castle and tell every last one of our soldiers to ready up!” He commanded in a furious tone. “We’re bringing a war to Outworld!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______And with that, Eli threw a glowing, emerald-like stone on the ground, which summoned a humongous green portal in front of him, where he exited the scene from. Braxus threw the bone over his shoulder, took out a microphone from the side of his chair and connected it to the speaker system of each security camera._ _ _ _ _ _

______“ATTENTION! A HOSTILE HAS BREACHED OUR CAMP! ELIMINATE THE THREAT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!” He shouted into the microphone, which blared his command throughout the entire War Camp._ _ _ _ _ _

______At the bar, Skarlet found herself surrounded by about twenty werewolves, snarling viciously around her, ready to go for the kill._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Alright.” She said, putting her hand up. “You got me. But do you want to know what I got?” She asked Rowen._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What is it?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Lars’ blood on my hands-!” Skarlet thrusted out her hand and punched the guard square in the middle of his muzzle, potentially fracturing his nose, before shedding the armour like a second skin and immediately making a dash for the door. At this moment, many howls emerged from the bar before every wolf inside charged out of the tent, to pursue Skarlet. The Blood Mage ran and ran through the streets of the Camp, but the mob was right on her tail, catching up to her more and more by the second. Eventually, she found herself cornered around all sides, by all the vicious wolves surrounding her, with murder on their minds. Skarlet looked up and found out that she could possibly get to high ground against the wolves, via the larger tents._ _ _ _ _ _

______“DIE, BETRAYER!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______A wolf began lunging towards her, but she stuck her feet out, causing the foolish beast to throw itself, head first into her ripped boots. Due to the way she was positioned, this impact managed to give Skarlet a vertical boost, so she could jump upwards and then scale up the steel frames, that hold the tent together. Once she managed to make it to the top, she looked down, at the mob, that had somehow grown in numbers and is now surrounding all four sides of the tent._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Damn it.” She said to herself, with seemingly nowhere to run, so with a mighty yell she desperately called out the name of her companion._ _ _ _ _ _

______“JADE!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Skarlet was then dragged back down below and pinned to one of the walls by two wolves. She then proceeded to close her eyes, awaiting her inevitable death as one of them prepared his claws before a long pause happened. Both wolves wore looks of surprise on their faces. Skarlet turned her head to see what was happening before she too was left with her mouth agape and her eyes widened in shock._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What. The. F-“_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jade was standing at the entrance of the cargo tent, only she was carrying an assault rifle, picked up from the Black Dragon Contraband crate, as well as wearing a makeshift headband, looking more like John Rambo. To the shock of both Skarlet and the mob of Lycans below her, Jade held the rifle, pointing at the enemies with a smirk on her face._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Guess not every dog has it’s day after all!” And after that single quip, acting like the hero in a classic action movie, Jade opened fire, spraying bullets all over the place in front of her and managing to hit a good portion of the crowd of werewolves, killing a bunch of them with shots to the head and heart, as some began to retreat behind the tents to take cover The typically-elegant Edenian was seemingly throwing away any form of grace and style in her kombat and instead resorting to using firearms to gain the upper hand, firing aimlessly and laughing like an armed maniac. However, Jade’s plan had one slight flaw. There was only one magazine she could find that would fit the gun, so this put her own attack out of commission, as the gang of wolves came back out and began to slowly move towards her._ _ _ _ _ _

______Luckily, the distraction allowed Skarlet to sneak away and use her Blood Magik to summon some blood daggers, firing them into the backs of the wolves, taking them down. She then took out her silver dagger and created an extension into a silver/acid-forged katana, the ultimate bane to Lycanthropy._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Let’s dance.” She said, before charging into battle. The Bloodbender flicked her wrist and managed to decapitate two wolves at the same time, before impaling another through the chest, whilst kicking backwards with both feet into another wolf, using the momentum to flip over her stabbed victim and then split them in half._ _ _ _ _ _

______Meanwhile, after her assault rifle had ran out of ammunition, Jade reached into Skarlet’s bag to find an alternative: her crossbow. After loading a silver arrow into it, she got to high ground, outside of the tent, and attempted to snipe her enemies below. And it did not take long for her first target to be shot. As Skarlet was pounced from behind by a Lycan, Jade steadied her shot before firing the crossbow, shooting straight into the head of the wolf, before it fell to the ground, dead. That was the first of her ten arrows she had used, so the Emerald sniper loaded another one, preparing to take aim. Unfortunately for her, Jade heard the sound of growling coming closer to her ear, and this was when she turned around, finding her face to face with a wolf who had just found her perched on top of the tent. Before it had a chance to attack, Jade frantically pressed the trigger of the crossbow, managing to fire the arrow into it’s heart and kill it, saving herself from danger, before retrieving the arrow from the corpse, preparing to re-use it for another victim._ _ _ _ _ _

______Down on the ground, Skarlet continued to decimate her way through what she saw as weaklings, trapping most of them in blood tentacles and squeezing the life out of them, to spilling their organs with deep slashes of her blade, to even draining their blood and turning it into weapons to use against the werewolves. It was only when too many surrounded her when Jade leapt from the tent she was on, armed with her glaive and staff, and rushed over on the low ground to help her lover out, slashing through masses of Lycans with her silver-tipped blade._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Damn. I was impressed with your firearm skills earlier.” Skarlet complimented. “Where on earth did some prim and proper Edenian learn something like that!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“During my trip to Earthrealm a few months back, where Johnny and Cassandra Cage invited me to a shooting range.” Jade explained, ending it with a smile as she impaled a nearby Lycan through the mouth with her staff._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Never knew you’d stoop to using guns, Jade.” Skarlet laughed before the two vixens continued their reign of destruction, as Braxus watched from his own lair, seething in anger._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Just die already!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______In the middle of the chaos, a thought came across Skarlet’s mind, from when she was impersonating Lars to infiltrate the Kamp, she remembered seeing a group of infected prisoners, led away to some room._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Wait here, Jade.” She told her friend, leaving her alone with 5 other Lycans, attempting to kill her. Meanwhile, Skarlet rushed over to the room that she passed by earlier and conjured up a blood ball in her hands. Using her Blood Magik, she balled her fist back and punched through the locked door, the blood ball empowering her strike by combusting and blasting the wooden door to smithereens. Inside were no less than ten werewolf prisoners, once innocent people changed by the venom._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Leave now.” Skarlet ordered. “You’re free to go!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Immediately, one male and one female ran up to her and bowed._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Oh, thank heavens you saved us!” The male spoke, showing his gratitude to the saviour._ _ _ _ _ _

______“We thought we were going to be stuck here forever.” The female spoke._ _ _ _ _ _

______“It was the least I could do.” Skarlet returned with a smile. “Now you may leave, and try to stay under the radar, in case of Tarkatans.” As all of the prisoners gathered together and left, Skarlet bid them farewell, calling out “May the Elder Gods guide you.” Afterwards, she rejoined the fight with Jade, to take out the last remaining guards._ _ _ _ _ _

______By the end of the infiltration, it was a gory mess of a scene. Blood splattered across the fabric of the tents, gore and flesh were laid, strewn across the ground, and both Skarlet and Jade were absolutely covered head to toe with Lycan blood._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hold still.” The bloodbender said before she held her hand out, causing the blood to become attracted to an unseen force in her hand, coming closer and closer until she had collected the blood off their bodies. Skarlet formed the crimson liquid into a large blood ball, before shaping it into a spear, the same length as Jade’s staff._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That makes two of us.” Jade remarked before clinking her own staff against the female Lycan’s own makeshift one._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Thank god for the Black Dragon. Never thought I’d ever say that-“_ _ _ _ _ _

______“The blood tastes good...” It was the demon in Skarlet’s head._ _ _ _ _ _

______“No...stop!” Skarlet clutched her head with a single paw, dreading the mocking voice looming around her brain, looking for the perfect opportunity to take over._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You cannot lie to me, Skarlet. The chaos was simply DELIGHTFUL!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I had no choice!” As Skarlet conversed with her inner demon, Jade looked on in bewilderment. She now fully knew what Skarlet was suffering with, not only the curse as a werewolf, but her inner demons too._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Murdering innocent beings, it was what you were made for! But now, I think I want to get in on the action myself!” And after the demon spoke, Skarlet bent her body over and let out a cry of pain, as if it suddenly jolted through her brain. Seeing this as a possible sign of the demon being released, Jade held Skarlet closely to her, acting as a beacon that had an aura of support radiating off of her, each wave trying to keep the demon back._ _ _ _ _ _

______“No! Stay with me!” The emerald assassin begged._ _ _ _ _ _

______As the two kunoichis stood in the bloody massacre around them, Braxus took the small TV, where he was watching everything from, and launched it against the wall, smashing it into pieces._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I shall kill them myself!” He said. The mighty Lycan King reached over, grabbing his mace before marching out of his own tent to deal with the problem himself. Kicking aside the remains of his comrades, he soon found himself face to face with Skarlet & Jade. Compared to the two, he was eight feet tall in height, compared to the 5 1/2 feet that made up the two ninjas. He was also significantly dominant in terms of physical structure, his gigantic muscles bulging, making his arms wider than Jade’s hips. His hulking mass towered over the emerald assassin and the Blood Mage._ _ _ _ _ _

______The Lycan King looked around the carnage left all over the camp. “You know what? For all the repetitive slander you give me, over making people ‘monsters’, you two don’t seem like little angels either.” And he held up a severed arm to prove his point. Both Skarlet & Jade had murdered masses of his allies._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’m giving their souls mercy, Braxus.” Skarlet responded. “Because, you have corrupted them to the point of no return, so I’d say the blood is on YOUR hands.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“...smart one, you are.” Braxus said. “But those were only my scouts, the weakest of the bunch. Because I know that you’ll get DEMOLISHED by my army. The thickest skin, the toughest builds, the sharpest skills. What can two little girls do against an army?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______The staredown between the three fighters continued as the full moon in the sky reached its apex, shining down on them like the spotlight in a fighting arena._ _ _ _ _ _

______“And from how much you’ve killed, I’m starting to think you enjoy this, Skarlet.” Braxus smiled, evilly._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’ll enjoy slicing your head off more.” The crimson wolf fired back._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You and I have a lot in common, than just being werewolves. We both revel in the murders of innocents around us. I told you before that we were PERFECT for each other.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“If you’re still trying to turn me over to your dark side, forget about it.” Skarlet’s defiant voice said. “I put it behind me. The demon may still be here, but I’ve learnt to restrain it.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Have you, though?” He questioned, after seeing her struggle from earlier on. Braxus had his gaze fixated upon the woman standing next to Skarlet, holding her bo staff, ready to fight._ _ _ _ _ _

______“If you won’t submit, then perhaps SHE will.” Braxus pointed a clawed finger in the direction of Jade, the only human between the trio._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You wouldn’t DARE!” Skarlet growled ferociously, her claws out, in response to the threat._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I’d like to see you try, Braxus.” Jade said._ _ _ _ _ _

______“So be it!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______And the battle commenced. Braxus lunged towards the two, who attempted to block his incoming charge. But upon making contact with their weapons, the Lycan King disappeared in a blast of golden smoke._ _ _ _ _ _

______“What in Argus!?” Jade coughed, surprised at the sudden disappearance of her opponent._ _ _ _ _ _

______Suddenly, Braxus reappeared behind them, grabbing Skarlet by her tail and slamming her on the ground behind her. A cry of pain emitted from the she-wolf, who collapsed on the floor, almost motionless, due to the damage taken. From behind, Jade attempted to attack with her staff, but Braxus was ready, taking his Mace and swatting Jade’s weapon away, like a harmless fly. He barely missed another swing of his weapon, before taking advantage of the distraction with a huge headbutt, bringing his cranium down upon Jade’s with frightening force, knocking her down. But Jade wasn’t going to go down as easy, as she performed a kip-up, before charging towards Braxus, at astounding speeds, as her entire body glowed with green aura, with her leg outstretched, connecting with a green Nitro Kick. However, the thickness of the Werewolf King’s skin made it nearly impossible for him to feel any damage, so he grabbed Jade’s leg and launched her into the air, before stretching his fist back, ready to deliver an almighty punch. Jade was just as cunning as he was, as she took out her glaives and threw it downwards towards him. Braxus was able to dodge each one, but the distraction gave Jade the opportunity to dive down and thrust her staff onto his head, potentially shattering a part of his skull. Unlike her melee strike from earlier, this managed to put a dent on the mighty Braxus, who staggered back before Jade charged her staff with green energy, swinging the side of it into his torso, like a baseball bat. Despite all of these strong strikes, she was unable to get the big Lycan down._ _ _ _ _ _

______Meanwhile, behind them, Skarlet recovered and looked on as Jade and Braxus dueled, his powerful strikes missing the dodging shadows. But as she got up on her feet, more jolts of pain entered her brain._ _ _ _ _ _

______“This is your soulmate, Skarlet? A weak human being dominated by a powerful Lycan. You should know better.” The taunts from within continued. Meanwhile, Braxus got the advantage, swinging his metallic club into Jade’s midsection, before swinging it upwards, like a golf club, into her face, knocking the emerald back. As Skarlet looked on in despair, she doubled over and let out a pained cry, as the demon tried to take over again. Now that Jade wasn’t nearby, it was the perfect time for the demon to strike, it’s negative energy flowing through every pore of Skarlet’s brain, as the she-wolf’s eyes began to flash blood-red._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Yesss...” Braxus walked over to Skarlet and encouraged the mind morphing. “Succumb to your demons, Skarlet.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Nothing but animalistic growls came from Skarlet, who’s mind was corrupted by the inner beast, that she had previously showcased by attacking her allies and causing carnage around Outworld. She stared at Braxus, in a trance, with her dagger-like fangs on display._ _ _ _ _ _

______“There is no use fighting these changes, Skarlet. It’s been in your blood your entire life. You were made for this. Now join me, and together, we can rule over the realms, starting with Outworld.” And with that, the Werewolf King held out his almighty paw, aiming to seal the partnership._ _ _ _ _ _

______There was still a ton of resistance within Skarlet, among the beastly emotions, as she tried to resist teaming up with the one she hated to destroy the one she loved. With drama surrounding this entire scenario, she slowly outstretched her own paw, coming closer and closer to connecting with Braxus’ own. Meanwhile, a fallen Jade looked on from her downed position, praying for a change of heart from within her loved one..._ _ _ _ _ _

______Suddenly, right as the two paws were about to connect, Skarlet’s other hand unsheathed her blade and impaled him in the left knee. He howled in pain, feeling the acidic venom burning around his thick skin trying to seep deeper into his body, to attack the leg muscles, as Skarlet drove the blade in as deep as she possibly could, laughing maniacally as she did so. But he managed to writhe free and hobble away from his attacker, before turning around to face the monster he created._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I will NEVER join you.” Skarlet shouted definitely at him._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I should’ve known you were a deceiver.” He growled, as he took his mace out, ready to battle._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That AND the fact that I’m nowhere near as stupid as you are,” she spat back, eyes glowing a golden colour, as the fight continued._ _ _ _ _ _

______The two opponents charged, as Skarlet slid under Braxus’ legs before preparing to pounce, dagger unsheathed, but Braxus was able to block her attempt with a swing of his mace, knocking it out of her hand. This forced Skarlet to frantically improvise, summoning a ball of blood before shaping it into a spear, as Braxus charged, ready to swing his mace down upon her body. He brought his weapon down with great force, but his attempt was blocked by the ferocious strength of the blood barrier Skarlet had created, using her spear. Braxus’ red eyes widened in horror, seeing a weapon made of liquid crimson block the power of his mace swing. The hesitation made Skarlet wrap and bend the spear around his mace, using it’s strength to pull it back towards her, and deliver a powerful elbow smash to the side of Braxus’ head. Immediately following that, she jumped onto his left shoulder and sunk her fangs deep into his skin, using the enhanced Lycan strength to bite down hard and rip out some of his muscles with her sharp teeth, causing blood to spray everywhere. As the crimson delicacy launched into the air, Skarlet controlled it with her Blood Magik and formed each droplet into a small dagger, with one large spear in the middle, before sending all of them down into Braxus, the sword going into his chest, just barely missing his vital organs. Then, she took the sword and with savage intentions, rapidly stabbed at his back, reminiscent of one of Mileena’s specialties, whilst yelling like an unstable, murder-hungry lunatic as she did so. Possessed or not, it is clearly shown that Skarlet is just as much of a skilled fighter as she is a vicious animal in her werewolf form. After she was done damaging him, Skarlet summoned the blood daggers to her hand, where she formed a blood ball and created a massive burst, knocking Braxus back a huge distance, and even knocking him down, as she landed on the ground, looming over him._ _ _ _ _ _

______“If only you’d knew about the carnage you have caused, ever since you sent your minion to infect me.” She said, grabbing him by a handful of fur on his chest._ _ _ _ _ _

______“The blood’s on your hands, Skarlet!” Braxus retorted. “I didn’t beat your Tarkatan friend to a pulp. I didn’t start a chaotic bar fight in public. And I sure as hell didn’t treat the one person who ever helped me like a piece of dirt on my shoe!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______That quote got Skarlet’s rage burning like an inferno. Grabbing both sides of Braxus’ head, she slammed it against the ground and forced him to look up at her face. She had her blood and flesh-covered fangs bared, snarling like a feral beast, with an animalistic and murderous look in her eyes, twitching like a blood-fuelled psychopath. “Oh, I’m going to kill you slowly!” She growled, unsheathing her dagger and preparing to plunge it into Braxus’ heart, but the Lycan King dodged and got back up to retrieve his mace. Skarlet forged her own weapon from blood, that being a lance, and prepared to do battle once again._ _ _ _ _ _

______War cries filled the night sky as Skarlet missed impaling Braxus, who capitalised with some punches to her temple. But as he went for a low mace swing, Skarlet jumped over the attack and stabbed his open wound on his shoulder with the special blade. After a second or two of feeling the burning pain of acid in his shoulder, Braxus used his other hand to stick his claws into her back, before dragging down, slicing at her skin. The Blood Wolf let out a scream of pain before Braxus swatted her off him with a hit from his mace. Meanwhile, Jade had also recovered and is now joining the fight to help Skarlet, and give Braxus a bigger challenge: Fighting both at the same time._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Wow. You really put a dent in his armour.” Jade said, impressed with how much effort Skarlet put in, compared to her own pan flashes. Meanwhile, the cuts on the red ninja’s back began to rapidly seal back up, an effect of the improved healing gained as a werewolf._ _ _ _ _ _

______“That’s Lycanthropy for you. A blessing in disguise, like you said.” The ruby-skinned wolf smiled back, before they focused their glares upon the Wolf King in front of them, in their own respective fighting stances. Skarlet had her fangs bared and her dagger unsheathed, whilst Jade gritted her teeth as she got her staff & glaive out at the ready._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Give up, Braxus! You cannot handle the two of us.” Skarlet called out to the damaged enemy._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Do you not know who I am!?” He shouted back, before the two sides charged into conflict once again._ _ _ _ _ _

______“You are a monster! And you will die like one!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Whilst running towards Braxus, Jade stuck her pole in the ground and pole-vaulted over him, before landing her legs around his neck. There, she attempted to stab the wolf in the head, but his arms were able to reach up and grab her, only for Skarlet to summon a large blood tentacle from behind to smack him down. The crimson appendage also grabbed Jade, who resisted at first, but was soon turned into a makeshift weapon as she held her staff out whilst the tentacle threw her like a javelin into Braxus, her staff firing right into his chest, presumably cracking a few ribs. Skarlet exploded the tentacle into a shower of blood, where she once again turned each droplet into a miniature spike, before sending them down into Jade. The Emerald Assassin spun her staff, where it made the spikes reflect off her and fire into Braxus’ direction, with a few of them impaling him. The entire fight that happened was nothing short of epic between the two sides, with Jade and Skarlet displaying brilliant tandem offence against Braxus, combining the strengths of Blood Magik with the strengths of Green Nitro to take the Lycan King down. Eventually, the brawl moved on out of the wreckage of the War Camp and to a grassy cliffside. The two kunoichi’s stood him down, in their fighting stances._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Surrender now, Braxus!” Skarlet warned. “Or you will continue to suffer.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“I still have some aces up my sleeve!” The Werewolf King retaliated before taking out a vial from his pocket. This time, it was filled with a silver-coloured liquid, which he threw onto the floor. The result was a large cloud of smoke covering where they fought. Both Skarlet and Jade’s visions were obstructed, so they lost Braxus from their sights, but their opponent was able to see them clearly. He swung his mace into Skarlet, to knock her back, before turning his attention to Jade. The green ninja fought back with her staff and razor-rang to counter his mace. Braxus managed to trip her with a sweep of his weapon before going for an overhead slam, but Jade reversed it by throwing her glaive upwards, impaling him in the torso. This seemed to have possibly struck a vital organ as Braxus dropped his mace and began to stagger backwards, thus allowing Jade to recover. As the wounded Lycan King was in a dazed state, this gave Skarlet the perfect opportunity to strike. The red she-wolf had her claws out and leapt in the air, ready to pounce. She closed her eyes flew down from the heavens with a mighty battle cry, preparing to deliver a critical blow to the wounded wolf-_ _ _ _ _ _

_______*slash* ____ _ _ _ _ _

________Upon her claws slashing at the skin, a feminine scream was heard, causing Skarlet to open her eyes. During her attempted attack, Braxus had noticed what her next move was, so he grabbed onto Jade and swung her into Skarlet’s direction of attack. This meant that she did not attack Braxus... _but Jade instead. _____ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Skarlet looked back, where she saw a disturbing scene, that being Jade, on her knees, as still as a statue with her eyes wide open in complete fear. When she raised her left arm into view, she saw a set of three large scratch marks, going down her forearm and drawing blood. Not a single sound was able to escape her mouth, except for a few heavy breaths of panic. Meanwhile, Skarlet shared a very similar expression, with her white eyes widened and her mouth agape in shock of her actions. Though she didn’t intend to attack Jade, she had been thrown into her path of destruction by Braxus, who watched the entire scene play out with a wicked smile stretched out across his maw of sharp teeth. He reached again into his pocket and pulled out a portal stone, before activating it and crawling into the portal, clutching his chest as he retreated, leaving a terrified pair of ninjas._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Oh...oh my god, Jade-“ Skarlet tried to form some words to say about her own mistake, but it was not easy, as fear and shock were the only emotions going through her._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She looked on as Jade, her emerald eyes still widened, raised her hand and watched in terror as her bleeding wound began to seal up on her skin, until a few seconds later, it looked like she had never been harmed in the first place. But as the skin was sealed back together, it took something odd with it: Lycanthropic Venom that came from Skarlet’s claws when she scratched Jade. The solution tainted Jade’s blood before mingling with it and beginning to travel throughout her entire bloodstream, making her DNA corrupted with that of a wolf. Skarlet walked over to her shaken lover, with an apologetic look in her eyes, staring into Jade’s frightened eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“...I’m scared!” Came the shaky voice of Jade, who immediately knew what was coming next, upon being infected. She glanced back at the full moon, in the sky behind her, before looking back at Skarlet, giving the Blood Mage a haunting view, for her once jewel-green eyes have turned completely white, from the pupils to the iris, and are glowing as bright as the moon. Jade dreaded her commencing transformation as she looked into Skarlet’s eyes, mirroring each other, as a single tear was shed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I didn’t mean to attack you!” Skarlet’s tone of peril said. “I-I’m sorry!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“No. Don’t be.” Jade grunted back, feeling a painful sensation coming from her midsection. What was going on right now was very familiar to a situation that happened a few nights ago, when she saw Skarlet clutch her stomach and bend over in pain. However, she was the one in that role and even worse, it was going the exact same way. “It was my fault...I shouldn’t have come for you.” Jade reached a hand down to her abdomen and felt what she feared would happen. Slowly and painfully, a bunch of small, individual hairs were growing from her bronze skin. There were so many of them grouped together that it began to resemble a coat of fur growing on her body, however, it’s colour was that of a dark grey, a complete contrast to her natural tan skin tone._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Through all of this, Jade’s eyes remained wide open, still expressing fear throughout this entire turn of events._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“This can’t be happening...” her voice trailed off at the end, due to overwhelming despair, before she lifted up her left hand, and yelled in pain, feeling her bones crack and shift in some places, whilst the same grey hairs on her torso began to grow on her hand. Jade looked on helplessly as she turned her hand over to see some black layer of skin forming on her palm and ends of her fingers. Her gaze travelled to her fingertips where her nails began changing, sharpening down into claws and completing the animalistic changes on her hand, as the silver fur began spreading up her arms._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Another agonising cry escaped from Jade’s mouth as more pain was felt, this time on her entire torso. Not only was more fur growing around her shoulder and upper torso, but she also felt her muscular structure begin to convulse, to the point where they might break from her delicate skin. Her now-corrupted blood ran though her veins like lava through a volcano, with the burning sensation inside her body making it all the more brutal for her. Many loud tearing sounds were heard as the back of her top began separating down the middle, due to her growing back muscles, before the fabric tore open, exposing her fur-covered skin. It was also happening on the front part, with the top coming more damaged by the second, which exposed parts of Jade’s chest._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Throughout her friend’s agonising metamorphosis, Skarlet was helplessly looking on in despair, knowing that she is now witnessing the pain that she had previously felt, being inflicted upon her friend._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Jade...please look at me.” The red wolf said frantically to her transforming lover. “I’m right here.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Through strained movements, Jade’s head leant up, and Skarlet was able to read how much pain she was in, through her expressions of torment. The two pairs of glowing eyes met again as Skarlet clasped her paws around Jade’s left one._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You’re going to be fine, my love.” She said in a wavering voice, expressing concern for her companion._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“AAAAAGH...Oh god!” The torture was now beginning to extend to the lower half of Jade’s body, rendering her unable to stand due to it’s ungodly assault, and causing her to bene over in pain. Skarlet could do nothing but look on, watching as the delicate fabrics began to snap and tear before exposing her skin, which was brief due to more instances of growing fur covering every square inch. As Skarlet looked into the pained expression in Jade’s eyes, she noticed what was going on at the sides of her head. Her ears were reshaping into a pointed structure, before they began moving to the top of her head, settling in among her long, flowing black hair, resembling a pair of wolf ears. Jade felt more pain around her back area as the next part of her shift began taking place, in the form of a large bulge beginning to grow at the back of her attire. It’s size grew before the fabric ripped to reveal a large silver wolf tail emerging from the bottom of her spinal cord. The Emerald lady looked back and gasped in horror, feeling the structural changes that were taking place on her body._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I can’t do this-“ came her terrified voice._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You can do this.” Came Skarlet’s own response. “I’m here for you.” She was desperate to prevent any form of demon from coming out of Jade, not wanting her to go through the full painful experience that Skarlet, herself has already been through._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________More ripping sounds were heard, this time at Jade’s feet, where she looked behind to see her newly-mutated feet burst from her kombat boots. They appeared much longer and were tipped with claws at the end of each of her toes, as well as being covered in grey fur. More and more horror came over the silver wolf as she braced for possibly the most torturous part of her transformation. Upon feeling the first hits of pain in her head, screams of agony escaped her lungs as she began to feel the effects._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“AAAAAAAAAAAARGH!” Jade yelled aloud, feeling each one of her teeth in her mouth sharpening into fangs. “OH GOD, END THE PAIN!” Skarlet’s horrified expression continued as she saw Jade’s nose turn black and reshape into that of a wolf, this was in addition to the last portion of her skin being enveloped by the ever-growing fur, the silver colours making her dark hair, her black eyebrows and her natural lips stand out on her face. But she was busy focusing on something else, and that was preventing the emergence of a demon inside of Jade. She clasped her hand’s around Jade’s own as tightly as she possibly could, holding on to the conscience of her loved one, making sure it doesn’t succumb to Lycanthropic corruption._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Stay with me...” Skarlet pleaded in desperation, hoping for something positive to come out of this. As this happened, Jade’s transformation came to a stop. And with her eyes wide shut, her hand broke free from Skarlet’s grasp, still clutching and thrashing her head violently in pain, growling like a wild animal before the pain forced her on a single knee, allowing her to throw her head back and unleash an ear-shattering howl to the full moon, completing the monster that she has become_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________The second the animalistic call came to a halt, Skarlet looked on as Jade’s lowered head came into her view. Her eyes were closed and she heard a combination of heavy breaths and low growls coming from her voice._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Jade...”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Skarlet got her answer in the form of the Emerald Creature’s eyes snapping open, to reveal that the battle with the mind demon has been won and her eyes remained a glistening white. But from Jade’s mind, fear and horror were still set in, despite gaining control of her body. She looked down at her new form in shock, and let out a gasp of despair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“No...this cannot be!” Her gasps turned into near-inaudible sobs as she was brought to her knees, with a cry of anguish. After spending all this time avoiding this horrific scenario, Jade had become a werewolf herself, just like Skarlet. Knowing the agony her best friend has been through, from the past few days, Jade had prayed that she wouldn’t have to suffer this same fate, but she has now also been infected. It was truly a distressing scene for such a beautiful, elegant woman like her to be morphed into this creature of evil. Jade shared her devastated emotions with the other Lycan, Skarlet, who also began to shed tears, now that her loved one has contracted this curse. A feeling of guilt also overcame her, knowing that she was the one who set off this chain reaction, ending with the worst-case scenario. Gentle, yet emotional cries filled the night sky as emotions began to flow out of both wolves, formerly two beautiful, deadly kunoichis, mirroring a dreadful scene that occurred a few nights previously._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Mirroring Skarlet’s words from when her first transformation happened, as well as contrasting her own previous comments, Jade uttered the words through her sobs “I’m a monster!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Skarlet was the first to have her tears completely drained from her eyes, as she looked into the eyes of her loved one, horrified at what she had become._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Jade-“_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You don’t get it, Skarlet!” She said, her eyes still damp with tears. “I...I only said that to make you feel better, Skarlet. Because I didn’t truly experience the terror you were going through until now.” Jade said in denial, created by her constant state of fear. “In fact, I’ve been fearing this just as much as you have, on the inside.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“What do you mean by that?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I remember seeing you in agony not only during your first transformation, but afterwards when you told me about the demon inside, and after that when I got to see it on full display. And after hearing about what happened between you and Kitana, I wanted to avoid this more than ever in case all of this happened to me. Where I would unleash my demon, hurt everybody around me, and worst of all, lose the one friend who’s been loyal to me my entire life! And now look at me! I really have become the monster I had feared the entire time.” And with that she hung her head in devastation, with no more tears left to weep as Skarlet came over, wrapping her arm over Jade’s shoulders._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You are many things to me, Jade,” she said, just managing to bring up some courage in her voice, “but a monster is not one of them, just like what you told me.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You may deny it, but your words are fact. You were right all along.” Skarlet continued. “You taught me that the defiance in people, to resist temptation towards the dark side is what makes them human on the inside, no matter what their appearance is.” She brushed aside a few strands of hair from Jade’s face, getting a good view of it. The mass of fur covering it failed to stop the humanlike beauty from shining out of her face. “Besides, like you told me, you don’t look nearly as monstrous as the other Lycans. I am still able to see that beautiful face that I know and love, no matter how much fur conceals it, because I always see Jade on the inside.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I suppose so”, Jade responded. “But what about Kitana?” She asked, getting a brief sigh from Skarlet, given the pair’s history. “If she finds out I’m a werewolf, then she might reject me, as she did for you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“If that’s the case, then at least you’ll have me. There will be no more demons to fear for the both of us because we’ll always be by each other’s side, as soulmates.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Knowing that Skarlet was going to always be by her side, through hell and high water, Jade stood up and looked at her comrade._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Well, if I’m going to remain like this,” she said before a smile grew on the right corner of her mouth, “at least I get to do it with you, Skarlet.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________With both heartwarming monologues spoken, the pair of she-wolves embraced each other, but it was so passionate to the point that they ended up collapsing to the grassy floors below them. After laughing off the brief fall, they reconnected their embrace as Jade nuzzled the side of Skarlet’s cheek, making the blood mage face her. The two took a moment to create a mirror image with their pupils, staring into one another and looking at their respective gorgeous complexions, despite being twisted by the Lycanthropic DNA racing through their bloodstreams._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I love you, Jade.” Skarlet declared her sworn love for her soulmate by nuzzling up against her fuzzy cheek._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I love you too, Skarlet.” Came Jade’s response._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________And there they both rested, the moonlight shining down upon them, as they laid on the floor in each other’s arms, a symbol of unity between two people who were once the worst of enemies, a rivalry born from a life of misguidance and a hatred for unneccessary murder, and are now the strongest of pairs. They might have lost their human forms on the outside, but no matter what anyone else thought, they were still human by heart._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now Jade’s become a werewolf too! 🙀 So now we have not one but TWO kursed female ninjas! What will happen next? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> Full moon this weekend, which makes it the perfect setting for this part story! What did you think of how the Lycans were presented in this section? Then again, apart from big Braxus, they were mostly jobber material for Skarlet & Jade.
> 
> Next chapter can be perfectly described as forcefully wringing out tears from our three female protagonists. And honestly, at this point, IDK where I’m going with the story. I’m just writing this becauss writing about things like transformation scenes is interesting, as there’s so much to describe, such as feelings going through the victims mind, and other things. This got me so hooked that I regularly forget about the main storyline I’m supposed to be writing about and tend to rush it a bit, rather than a slow, logical build. 
> 
> In fact, as of now, I’ve just begun writing chapter 10, the last chapter. What happens in that? Find out whenever I get any interesting ideas that make the storyline seem 1% more logical (in other words, it might be late)! Until then (and sorry for rambling there) take care, my friends!


	9. Reconciliation (Fifth Day)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With their goal to eliminate the Lycans still in mind, Skarlet and Jade are visited by a former ally, who offers aid for an end to their personal konflicts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _’Taking more than a glimmer in this tainted moonlight,  
>  Death approaches on this night...’_
> 
> _‘For the Animal’s soul is miiiiiine!  
>  We will be completed right before your eyes!  
> I have no control this tiiiiiime.  
> And now, we both shall dine,  
> In Hell tonight!’_
> 
> (Disturbed - ‘The Animal’)

The intensity of the shining sun is what caused Skarlet to awaken from her deep slumber. As she slowly opened her eyes, her mouth stretched into a smile because of what she saw in front of her. Rather than the visage of a werewolf, she saw the beautiful face of Jade, restored to her human form. The Bloodbender gently stroked her loved one’s forehead to try and wake her up, which she did. Upon waking up, Jade slowly reached a hand up to her face, seeing it as a regular humanoid appendage, rather than a feral weapon. She used it to stroke her own cheek and instead of feeling strands of grey fur, she felt the smoothness of her mocha skin.

“Hello, beautiful!” The Blood Mage smiled.

Jade, still laying on the ground, in contrast to Skarlet kneeling, looked up and smiled back. “I could say the same about you.” She eventually found the strength to sit up.

“So what’s our next plan of attack?”

There was a pause as Skarlet temporarily mused before shrugging. “I have no idea.” Came her sigh. “We don’t know where Braxus is.”

“Then we may have to set out soon, so we can have a chance at finding his whereabouts before the next full moon.” Jade said as she and Skarlet rose to their feet.

“But firstly,” Skarlet held a hand to her abdomen, feeling her stomach growling, indicating hunger, “I reckon we should find some breakfast.”

“Let’s see what the War Kamp has.” And with that, the two kunoichis set off to the wreckage of the War Kamp, ravaged by their invasion the night before. A majority of their food supplies were either taken or destroyed, although they did manage to find some bread. It was a bit stale, but considering the circumstances that they are in, it was enough to keep them going. They also managed to find a water tap, which they used to hydrate and refill Skarlet’s supply.

“So what did you think? Still better than that ‘Velveteen’ place we stayed at in Earthrealm?” As they walked away from the ruins, a joke was cracked by Skarlet, in reference to the mediocre, but edible, food quality.

“I’ll tell you this Skarlet, nothing will ever be as foul or as vile as ‘Velveteen’ and it’s excuse for food. Hell, you could urinate in my mouth, for all I care, and it would still taste better.”

A pause happened, as what Jade said was shockingly awkward, before they both burst out laughing, for the mere unexpectedness.

“Well...I definitely picked the wrong time to show up.”

Skarlet and Jade heard a voice from behind, before they turned around and yelped in surprise, tripping backwards. The voice came from Kitana, with a half-smile on her face. She was flanked by Baraka and Erron, as well as a small army of Tarkatans. It seemed that Jade’s toilet humour wasn’t the only unexpected event.

“Kitana! H-how did you find us?” Jade stuttered in surprise, as she and Skarlet got back up.

“There was a trail of footsteps left behind, which led me to where you are.” Kitana explained before she glared at Skarlet, who returned with a scowl. “And YOU-“

“Why me? I’m not the one sneaking off without your permission!” Skarlet stopped Kitana from saying what she knew was going to come out.

“Oh, it’s a lot more than that why I’m livid with you...” the Empress said, ominously.

“Can we not start this again, ladies?” Erron chimed in.

“SILENCE, BLACK!” Both women said simultaneously, before resuming their argument.

“You caused damage to citizens, you broke the quarantine rules and worst of all: you BETRAYED me!”

“Stop being so dramatic, Kitana! You know that I had my reasons for leaving.”

“And what were your reasons for striking me down and denouncing me?” Kitana said, placing her hands on her hips.

“You know what, Kitana? I say you deserved it for your incompetency, as well as how ungrateful you are!”

“I was the one who accepted you for who you are, Skarlet! I gave you a home where nobody else would, after Shao Kahn’s death and you repay me like this!?”

“And I was the one who helped you against Shao Kahn! If it weren’t for me, there would be no Kitana Kahn!”

“Please, stop!” Jade interrupted their spat, not wanting it to spiral out into another fight, as she remembered similar words thrown violently between Skarlet and Jade beforehand, which led to a fight.

“Just admit it! Both of you are in the wrong here, not just one person. I understand the animosity between you two but now is not the time-“

“You know what, Jade? I consider you a fine one to talk, disobeying my order to not find Skarlet.” Kitana began.

“And leave her for dead, Kitana!?”

“She was dead to me ever since that one night.”

“This needs to end right now, both of you! I’ve seen children make up quicker than you two” Jade was unable to take two of her closest friends arguing with each other.

“I reckon you should let me handle this, Jade.” Skarlet said, gently pushing her to the side, and getting dangerously close to Kitana.

“I’m being serious, Skarlet! It’s bad enough that now BOTH of us are infected but now you’re not even letting go of this petty-“

“Hold on!” Kitana stopped Jade’s protest, after hearing something suspicious. The emerald assassin’s own jewelled eyes widened, in reaction to her own words slipping out.

“Is this true, Jade,” she said calmly, “that you are now a werewolf!?”

Jade sighed and replied with a simple “Yes.”

“Now you see what I was on about before!?” Kitana exclaimed in anger. “This is exactly what I feared would happen! And it’s YOUR fault, Skarlet!” She pointed a finger at the Blood Mage. “You did this to my best friend!”

“Stop blaming me for everything, Kitana!” Skarlet fired back with the same intensity.

“She’s right! It was my fault for going out to assist her.” Jade explained, taking full responsibility.

“But it wasn’t worth the hassle! I told you that we were not saving Skarlet, yesterday!”

“I wasn’t going to leave my loved one for dead because I have heart, unlike what you’ve shown the past week.” Jade continued her rant with a harsh line “And you know what? From what I heard, Skarlet wasn’t completely wrong about you! Even Mileena would’ve had a better strategy than hiding away like cowards!”

The mere mention of her ‘sister’ caused anger to boil up inside Kitana, as she gave Jade a hard slap across the face. “HOW DARE YOU!” This was followed by Skarlet getting up in Kitana’s face, grabbing her collar.

“Do NOT put your hands on her, Kitana!”

Kitana broke free from her grasp before an all-out verbal brawl broke out between the two of them, at each other’s throats, with Erron attempting to restrain the two, in case a physical brawl broke out. Meanwhile, Jade sat on the ground, clutching her cheek, whilst tears began to well up. She couldn’t remember the last time Kitana attacked her like this, especially after their eternal friendship from their childhood in Edenia to today. It is quite shocking to know that all three of them were once on the same page, in a unity, but now it seems that such unity is beginning to crumble this second.

_*thump*_

“ **STOOOOOP!!!** ” Came a furious roar, putting an end to the argument. Baraka seemed fed up of seeing Kitana, Jade and Skarlet like this.

“Stop it, the pair of you! It’s bad enough that there is animosity between you lot, but during a critical time like this is not when it should be happening! Now, I did not want to be dragged out in the middle of nowhere just to watch you squabbling like children! I wanted to come out here and kill Lycans. So, if you would be so kind, CAN ALL OF YOU JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP!!??” The angry general finished his rant by trying to calm himself with some deep breaths, as the three female ninjas took in what was said. The silence eventually died down and Skarlet walked off, glaring back at Kitana as she did so. The Kahnum returned with a sneer of her own as she walked off in the opposite direction, leaving Jade sitting alone. The Emerald Assassin hung her head low and wept.

“I can’t believe she just did that! My best friend!”

Baraka walked over and raised her head by the chin, in a sort of consoling manner. “Don’t let it get to you, Jade. It has been a stressful time for every single one of us. And I hope that Kitana and Skarlet will make amends soon.”

(Later...)

As the soldiers searched the wreckage of the Lycan War Kamp, Skarlet was seen sitting at a nearby table in the deserted bar, with a glum look on her face. Her mind went through a recap of what transpired ever since the argument during the meeting a few days prior. What followed after that was not only her, but Jade getting infected, as well as her bond between most of her closest allies broken beyond repair.

Speaking of Jade, she was left wandering in the abandoned weapons tent, where she previously found the Black Dragon weaponry. She too relayed previous events in her mind, becoming sadder at the thought of abandoning her lifelong friend in Kitana just to help someone who deemed her as her true love, only to end up becoming a werewolf herself.

Meanwhile, Kitana had just finished making negotiations with Baraka and is now walking off. As soon as their eye contact was broken, she wore a sullen expression. She remembered what started it all, when she attacked Skarlet in an outburst, which led to an important bridge being burned between the two of them. And now she had recently attacked Jade out of anger and she felt absolutely dreadful about it. After a few more moments of musing, she decided to make her way to the abandoned bar, deciding that she could try to repair the bridge. Walking through the crime scene of the previous night was pretty gruesome, even with the corpses cleaned up. The ‘streets’ were paved with dried blood and a few bits of viscera, which also painted the torn fabrics of nearby tents. She eventually reached the bar and stepped inside, with the first thing she noticed was a broken stool, covered in blood, as well as a helmet, with red stains on it. Looking forward, she saw Skarlet, who was sitting at a nearby table, her upper body slumped over it, possibly indicating that she was asleep. After taking a deep breath, Kitana walked over to Skarlet and tapped her gently on the shoulder, causing her to slowly wake up with a yawn.

Now mostly awake, Skarlet looked up at Kitana and said “Oh, it’s you. What do you want?”

“I have come...to apologise, Skarlet-“

“You don’t need to.” The blood mage interrupted her. “I should’ve stayed back at the castle anyway.”

“No, no, that’s not what I want to apologise for.” Kitana redirected her peer.

“Then what is it?”

“I want to apologise because I believe...” and she sighed, her face shifting to a more melancholic look. “I failed you. Not only as an Empress, but as a human being overall.”

Skarlet lifted her head, raising an eyebrow at Kitana’s apology, as the Kahnum continued.

“You remember what happened in the past, Skarlet?”

Upon Kitana saying the word “past”, Skarlet’s mind opened up like a vault. About her past, Skarlet was originally born in Earthrealm, Russia, to be exact, where she loved her family. But tragedy struck during an invasion, which killed her father & siblings, as well as separating herself from her mother, whilst still a child. After living as a starving beggar for a while, Shao Kahn found her on the Streets of Outworld and took her in, rejuvenating her before teaching her the art of Blood Magik. Skarlet also remembered how much Mileena, one of Shang Tsung’s creations adopted by the Emperor, acted like an older sister to her, and took care of her, following Shao Kahn’s death. However, she too would die, after being executed by Kotal Kahn, leaving Skarlet wandering alone in Outworld for years until she encountered Jade and Kitana, two of the people she hated the most, due to the influence of her father, whom they betrayed to the heroes’ side. They ended up telling the truth about Shao Kahn, about how much of a tyrant he was, and that he was the one who sent the invasion squad to Russia, which ended up changing her life for the worse. With blood boiling, Skarlet turned up during the Battle for Outworld and helped Kitana kill Shao Kahn.

_“For Outworld. For Edenia. FOR MY FAMILY!”_

_And with one swift slice, Shao Kahn’s head was detatched from his neck. His blood spear-impaled body slumped to the floor as his head rolled on the ground, his helmet also coming off in the process as the Koliseum crowd cheered wildly._

_Watching on in the distance, Jade and Skarlet both smiled in triumph. Shao Kahn is dead, and now there is a new Kahn in town: Kitana Kahn._

_“She is now officially out of your league.” Kung Lao snarked at Liu Kang, standing next to him._

_Kitana looked around at what was happening, with an overjoyed smile on her face. After years and years of grief and agony, she finally konquered the one person who ruined the lives of not just her but for all of Edenia and Outworld._

_Then, Skarlet walked forward with Jade, to congratulate her. After she was embraced by Jade, she saw Skarlet lower her head shamefully and kneel down._

_“What are you doing, Skarlet?” She questioned in confusion._

_“Do it. I don’t deserve mercy.” Skarlet responded._

_Kitana raised an eyebrow, confused at the gesture that Skarlet is making. “I don’t get it.”_

_“I have served Shao Kahn for years, even after his supposed death. I deserve to be executed, like his other loyal servants.” The blood mage continued as Jade also looked on in disbelief._

_Kitana looked on and then mused for a few seconds. Although Skarlet literally joined their side and helped them kill Shao Kahn, she had been one of his most loyal subjects, on top of murdering countless innocents for blood. After a moment, she took Skarlet’s hand and stood her up._

_“I know about your past.” She said. “You were taken from your family and left to starve in the streets, awaiting hospitality from literally anyone. Shao Kahn did give you that but also corrupted you.” She looked into the crimson eyes and smiles. “I don’t think you are evil, Skarlet. All I see is a victim of bad influence, without a true family...which is why I want to welcome you into mine.”_

_Skarlet’s frown began to slowly turn into a smile. “Is this really true, Kitana!?”_

_“Yes.” The new Kahn continued. “I believe that all people deserve a second chance in life. I am officially appointing you into my new council, Skarlet.”_

_Overjoyed, with too many emotions flowing within, Skarlet thrusted her body into Kitana’s and hugged her, a single tear running down her cheek as the Empress hugged back._

_“Thank you so much!”_

_“It was the least I could do, my friend.” Kitana smiled back._

“From that day, I swore that you would be under my protection and made sure that you felt like you were part of our family. But with what happened recently...I...” Kitana choked through her dialogue, with tears running down her face. “I broke a promise to you, Skarlet! And I’m sorry!”

Now in the present day, it was Kitana shedding a few tears, as she and Skarlet both finished reminiscing the time that Shao Kahn was killed and Kitana welcomed Skarlet with open arms.

“I wish I really knew how much this meant to you before all of this happened!”

“You shouldn’t be the one apologising, Kitana.” Skarlet stood up, gently lifting Kitana’s chin, so she was facing the Blood Mage. “I should have taken all of this for granted, not run away from the one family that I had left.”

“B...but I was the one who attacked you-“

“And I was the one who got infected and unknowingly tore our relationship apart. There’s no need to blame yourself for any of this, Kitana.” Skarlet continued, whilst also trying not to break down into tears, during this emotional talk with the Empress.

“If you say so...” Kitana sniffled before composing herself, “then I forgive you, Skarlet.”

Upon hearing these words, Skarlet tilted her head upwards and raised an eyebrow. How on earth could she be forgiven for what she did!? Countless injuries, endless carnage and even murder, regardless if she was under control or not.

“I not only know that it wasn’t you that caused the many casualties that took place over the past few days, but also because I cannot hold a grudge with you forever on it.” Kitana began to explain.

“You see, Skarlet. There’s a lot more in common than you think we have. I know what it is like to lose a family. I remember that dreadful day when Edenia was conquered by Shao Kahn. My father, King Jerrod was killed and my mother, Queen Sindel was forced to join Shao Kahn but she later died. All I had left for a family was Jade but I was also forced into a family I never wanted, with Shao Kahn and his gang of cretins. But I remember one of those days when I once heard him talking to you about me. He told you that all Edenians are scum and that they care not for other people, rather themselves. You were only a young child so he took this perfect opportunity to corrupt you and turn you against me. And from there, I kept a promise to myself, and that was to help you see the light, that there is more to us than that. I wanted to purify you and bring out the more human side in you.” She began to choke up once again as Skarlet began to shed a few small teardrops. “And now look! We both have the perfect family! And it might not be Russia or Edenia, but as long as we have each other, *sniff* I consider you to be my sister! A true family is all I ever wanted and _I don’t want to lose it again!_ ”

It was too much to contain as a stream of tears flowed from Kitana’s eyes. She embraced Skarlet and wept, overcome with emotional sadness leaking from her eyes. The Blood Mage also joined her Empress in a tearful embrace, knowing that she shared the pain that she had felt in the past. She now knew that she wasn’t the only one who didn’t want this newfound family to be torn apart.

“No matter what it takes, I will never truly resent you, Kitana!” Skarlet said through her tears. Suddenly, she felt a third hand wrap around her back, as well as Kitana, as they both looked up to see Jade, a loyal friend and loved one to both Skarlet and Kitana, overjoyed to see a bond being repaired between the two. As she witnessed the two people closest to her with their heads intertwined, resting against each others’, she lowered her own head, and this action signified the everlasting bond between the three of them, not just as allies, but as family. 

“Jade.” Kitana said, as a hand began to dry her tears away. “Please...forgive me!”

Jade smiled and affectionately hugged her Empress. The moment was so powerful that even Baraka, in the distance, looked on with a smile, as the strong connection reminded him of the same that he had with his own family, especially his father, before his passing.

After the moment had passed and each female got the chance to fully console themselves, they all walked out, greeted by the Tarkatan Army. Kitana stood by them, to face Skarlet & Jade.

“This is currently the most crucial challenge I have faced, thus far, as the Empress of Outworld. Like Baraka said, we cannot afford to have any animosity between us because it could give the Lycans a chance to strike and damage the armour.”

Both red and green ninjas looked down at their hands, one having absorbed wolf blood and the other infected with wolf venom. All this was because of a falling-out with each other.

“And it seems now that Braxus has forced our hands this far, so I am now willing to admit...” she turned to one of her comrades, “Skarlet. You were right all along.”

“About what?”

“We need to fight back. This is why I summoned the army. We are officially declaring war on the Lycans!” The Empress made her decree to loud cheers from the army behind her. Skarlet looked on with a smile, grateful that she is now playing an important part in removing the threat of Lycans from Outworld.

“However, it was not the easiest task for this realm. They are near-immune to any weapon that is not forged with silver. Which is why we had to go into economic recession, as we used up all the silver that was meant for coins to create new modifications for our weapons. This means that this battle is do or die for Outworld.”

Skarlet had an inquiry. “But me and Jade have been infected and we transform at the same time the battle begins. How do you know we won’t be mistaken for the enemy?”

“I will find a way, Skarlet.” Kitana answered. “For now, we need to think of a battle formation.” She said taking out a piece of paper. Baraka walked over with a plotting smile on his face, delighted at the thought of causing carnage.

Jade and Skarlet shared a look of confidence at each other.

“Let’s make this journey worth it, Skarlet.” Jade said, facing her loved one.

“I’m...sure we will.” Skarlet replied, but with an uneasy tone.

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s just that...” The Blood Mage hesitated to conjure up the right words to describe her matter. “I can’t believe my life has come to this. If only my family could see me now.”

“Then they would have the best of both worlds: An older sister AND a family pet!” Jade humoured, which elicited a laugh from Skarlet, trying to shed some light over her loved one’s uncertainty. “In all seriousness, there is no need to worry. If just the two of us can wipe out a war camp AND bring the King to his knees, imagine what we will do at the battle tonight.”

“I just don’t know what to expect.” Skarlet replied.

“Then let us expect the unexpected.”

“That includes our first consummation when we win?” The bloodbender raised her eyebrow, suggestively.

“Skarlet!” An appalled Jade exclaimed with a laugh. “Let us not drop into the deep end just yet!”

“Just sayin’, I’ll be down there when you two start!” They heard the voice of Erron Black, acting perverted at the lustful thought planted into his head by Skarlet, who responded by throwing a stick at him, whacking him in the side of the face.

“Enough horseplay.” Baraka barged in, with a wooden stand and a chalkboard. “Now is the time to plan our attack.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Skarlet replied and the planning began. Tonight, it would be the most crucial, life-changing night in such a long time for Kitana and Jade, but for Skarlet, it’s beyond that. It’s her final chance to restore her humanity, to free the human side of her, to fulfil Kitana’s promise...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like the gang’s back together! But what will become of them as the war commences at full moon? All will be revealed in due time...
> 
> I did warn you people, lots of heart-wrenching sadness in this one, as well as a change from the original story. Do tell me what you think of this story. Am I overdoing it with certain parts? Is there something I’m doing that you like? (Please respond! I need this to help me be a better writer, dammit! 🥺)
> 
> About the release date of the next chapter, it’s going to be a while. You see, it’s not even 1/10th of the way completed, because I’ve been focusing a lot on school and spending a lot of my time staring blankly into space, pondering my very existence. So, the next chapter won’t be out for a while. However, it will be the last one (even though there will be another one with an epilogue) and I’m sure it’ll be worth the wait so stay tuned!


End file.
